That was Donald Trump’s order, he later recalled, to his motorcade after foul weather grounded Air Force One in Texas on Thursday.
asserted
weather → recall → Thursday
The 85-mile dash to Oklahoma at nearly 100mph was proof that nothing can keep Trump from a Trump rally.
asserted
nothing → keep → rally
As the US president embarked on a 32-day campaign blitz aimed at helping them defend narrow congressional majorities in next month’s midterms, some fear that he is driving them towards an electoral wipeout.
asserted
he → embark → wipeout
Some Republicans are moving to distance themselves from a man they now see as more liability than asset.
asserted
they → move → asset
Wherever he turns, the outlook is grim as he sets off on an expected schedule of five to seven rallies per week.
asserted
he → turn → week
“They’ve been a mainstay of his brand, but they’re also the engine of his doom,” Steve Schmidt, a political strategist, said of Trump’s signature campaign rallies.
asserted
Schmidt → ’re → rallies
“Everybody knows the obvious, which is that his presence hurts every Republican candidate on the ballot because the race is fundamentally about Trump and the American people are sick and tired of him.”
asserted
people → know → him
Schmidt added: “He’s surrounded by people who tell him that he’s beloved and that the answer to his problem is to keep talking, to keep performing, to keep doing the rallies, that the answer is more, not less.
asserted
answer → add → rallies
These rallies have become his lead weight, his proverbial anchor that’s going to drown them all.
asserted
that → become → them
Even in a hyper-digital age, Trump’s rallies have shown the enduring power of live performance.
asserted
rallies → show → performance
The atmosphere, somewhere between cult worship, rock concert and partisan sports event, offers his followers a sense of belonging.
asserted
atmosphere → offer → belonging
Since launching his bid for president in 2015 he has held roughly a thousand of them, though definitions of what counts as a full “rally” can vary.
asserted
what → launch → rally
Blake Marnell, a rally regular in a brick-patterned suit resembling Trump’s border wall, was in Oklahoma on Thursday night.
asserted
Marnell → pattern → night
He said: “Getting in the motorcade, driving 100 miles an hour to Durant – he’s not gonna let stuff get in his way.
asserted
stuff → say → way
He enjoys the rallies.
asserted
He → enjoy → rallies
They’re energising for the crowd and for him.
asserted
They → energise → him
It’s a way for him to connect with the grassroots.”
asserted
him → ’ → grassroots
Once in Durant, Trump again basked in the adulation of the rally crowd.
asserted
Trump → bask → crowd
Having spotted two diehard supporters being interviewed by TV crews outside the venue, he replayed the clip and summoned them on to the main stage.
asserted
he → spot → stage
“You can’t miss big, strong, handsome Oklahoma studs,” he said.
asserted
he → miss → studs
One, wearing a green Trump cap and grey Trump T-shirt, stepped up to the microphone and said: “Thank you, President Trump, for all you do.
asserted
you → wear → all
Every day you work harder than any American I know.”
asserted
I → work → American
The other, wearing a red Make America Great Again cap and red T-shirt, said: “Absolute honour of a lifetime to be with the greatest president this country has ever had!”
asserted
country → wear → president
Marnell, from San Diego, California, loved this example of Trump showmanship and dismissed the notion that his rallies are hurting rather than helping Republicans.
asserted
rallies → love → Republicans
“That’s ridiculous.
asserted
That → ’ → ?
How many years now have we heard critics saying that Trump is done, the end is near, the walls are closing in, this is the beginning of the end, he can’t possibly win.
uncertain
he → hear → end
“They’ve written him off so many times, I don’t know why people listen when they say things like that.
asserted
they → write → that
It makes no sense to me.
asserted
It → make → me
This election is, to an extent larger than normal, going to be swayed by turnout and so turnout is the goal of these rallies.
asserted
turnout → go → rallies
Yet beneath the carnival atmosphere in Oklahoma lay an undercurrent of anxiety and a new vulnerability.
asserted
undercurrent → lie → anxiety
At one point Trump entreated the audience, “Pretend I’m running, please,” and begged them to contact friends and relatives.
asserted
I → entreat → friends
He openly admitted the Republican party’s precarious footing across the national map.
asserted
He → admit → map
“We’re worried about Michigan, we’re worried about Texas, we’re worried about a few states.
asserted
we → ’re → states
He has cause to be worried.
asserted
He → have → cause
A recent survey by the Associated Press-Norc Center for Public Affairs Research found that just 17% of US adults approve of Trump’s handling of the cost of living, while 26% approve of his handling of the economy – a new low.
asserted
% → find → economy
Only about three in 10 approve of how he is handling his job as president.
asserted
he → approve → president
In a striking sign of trouble, a major Republican political action committee has reportedly pulled back its spending in North Carolina, the only battleground state Trump won in all three of his presidential bids, diverting its resources instead to ruby red Kansas.
uncertain
Trump → pull → Kansas
Even among dedicated fans who have followed him around the country and become known as “front-row Joes” at his rallies, doubts are creeping in.
asserted
doubts → follow → rallies
Trisha Hope, a “front-row Joe” who once bought an RV and published a book of Trump’s tweets to fund her travel, recently declared him a “fraud and liar”.
asserted
him → buy → travel
Speaking to Politico, Hope cited Trump’s abrupt dismissal of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation during a cabinet meeting, as well as his unfulfilled promises regarding the war in Iran.
asserted
Hope → speak → Iran
…and 50 more, not listed.
The Aporia
