Donald Trump rallied thousands of supporters in Las Vegas on Sunday morning, pitching the importance of early voting and touching on a number of Nevada-specific proposals.
More than 8,400 people filed into the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino for the rally, Trump’s first visit to Nevada since the third presidential debate at UNLV. In a departure from his usual stump speech, the Republican billionaire touched on several Nevada specific issues like funding for Interstate 11 and the effect of the Affordable Care Act on the state.
“It’s just been announced that the citizens of Nevada are going to experience a massive, massive...double digit hike in their Obamacare premiums for the year,” he said. “Ten of Nevada’s 16 counties will have only Obamacare, and think of it, you can have one, exchange insurer that you can choose from. They are in a very good position to negotiate with you, aren’t they?”
Trump also said his infrastructure plan would include funding for the proposed I-11 interstate highway between Las Vegas and Phoenix, and connected his proposal for increased spending on the Air Force would benefit Nellis Air Force base.
He also encouraged rally goers to go and early vote, which continues in Nevada until November 4th.
“If anybody wants to leave right now, go ahead, I won’t be insulted,” he said. “There’s plenty of people outside who want to take your place, okay? Make sure you vote.”
Campaign staff encouraged rally attendees to get on busses following the rally going to early voting sites, but only about a dozen voters made it to an early voting site at the Boulevard Mall.
Democrats hold about about a 44,000 vote lead over registered Republicans after a week of early voting in the state. Most polls of Nevada, including a recent a recentKTNV-TV 13 Action News/Rasmussen Reports poll, show Clinton narrowly leading Trump with nine days left until Election Day.
Trump also zeroed in on news that the FBI was revisiting an investigation into emails related to Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State after potentially relevant emails were found on a laptop belonging to disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner.
“Hillary has nobody but herself to blame for her mounting legal problems,” he said. “Her criminal action was willful, deliberate, intentional and purposeful.”
“We never thought we were going to say thank you to Anthony Weiner,” he continued.
Nevada State Democratic Party head Roberta Lange issued a statement following the rally, saying that down-ticket Republicans who supported Trump will wear a “moral stain” for supporting the candidate.
“Voters will hold these gutless Republicans accountable for putting party over country and trusting Trump with the nuclear codes,” she said in a statement.
Trump’s last visit to Nevada was on October 5, during a campaign speech in Henderson.
