Trump Criticizes Minnesota Officials for Restricting Rally Size

President Donald Trump arrives to a campaign rally at Rochester International Airport in Rochester, Minn., on Oct. 30, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump on Oct. 30 called out Minnesota state officials for restricting the size of his rally to 250 attendees.

“Your far-left Democrat Attorney General Keith Ellison and your Democrat governor tried to shut down our rally, silence the people of Minnesota and take away your freedom and your rights,” the president said.

“They thought he would cancel,” he added. “But I said, no way, I would never abandon the people of Minnesota. I will come up.”

Trump said 25,000 people wanted to attend the rally and claimed that cars were backed up for miles. Prior to addressing the crowd at the main event, he visited the people who could not make it in.

“I would like to thank the thousands of people outside who were barred from entry by radical Democrats. You are American patriots,” the president said.

President Donald Trump waves to the crowd as he leaves a campaign rally on Oct. 30, 2020 in Rochester, Minn. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Trump delivered the remarks with three days left before the presidential election on Nov. 3. The president’s campaign announced plans for 14 rallies in seven states for Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has consistently held events with small, socially distanced crowds in an attempt to limit the spread of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, commonly known as the coronavirus.

Biden spoke in Wisconsin on Friday and is scheduled to appear at two rallies in Michigan alongside former President Barack Obama on Saturday.

Trump has previously suggested that Democrats are employing restrictions and lockdown as a political tool to damage his reelection chances.

“When large numbers of rioters and vandals sacked the city of Minneapolis earlier this year, Keith Ellison did not ask them to submit a permit. He told the throngs of violent demonstrators, ‘by all means exercise your first amendment rights,’” the president said. “Keith Ellison sided with flag-burning extremists over law-abiding Americans.”

“Keith Ellison and Joe Biden want to imprison you in your homes while letting anarchists, agitators and vandals roam free as they destroy your cities and states,” he added.

Ellison’s office and the Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a requests for comment.

Biden holds a 7.9 point lead over Trump in national polling, according to an average of polls maintained by Real Clear Politics. In top battleground states, Biden leads by 3.1 points, which is within the margin of error for most individual polls.

More than 87 million people have already voted early in the election, more than 63 percent of all the votes cast during the 2016 election, according to the U.S. Elections Project.