{"id":9988,"date":"2024-01-21T19:30:16","date_gmt":"2024-01-21T19:30:16","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"Outside-of-Concord-event-Trump-fans-remain-loyal-to-their-man-53767274\/","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/?p=9988","title":{"rendered":"Outside of Concord event, Trump fans remain loyal to their man"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Kate
Kate Benner of Andover waits in line outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord to get in to see former President Donald Trump on Friday night, January 19, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Kate
Kate Benner of Andover waits in line outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord to get in to see former President Donald Trump on Friday night.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Kate
Kate Benner of Andover waits in line outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord to get in to see former President Donald Trump on Friday night, January 19, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Heather
Heather Dalbach of Sutton waits in line in the freezing cold with her service dog, Nessie, outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord on Friday night, January 19, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Amber
Amber Demmer of Concord waits in line outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord on her way to getting to see former President Donald Trump for the first time on Friday night, January 19, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"An
An RV outside the Courtyard by Marriot in Concord on Friday night, January 19, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/figure>

The line snaked from the Grappone Conference Center entrance into the parking lot, forming a giant \u2018S\u2019 of Donald Trump supporters exhaling frosty plumes, pinching their shoulders and smiling.<\/p>\n

The frigid temperatures Friday night didn\u2019t stand a chance against these fans, who were reminiscent of concert-goers waiting to see the show as peddlers outside sell Trump T-shirts, ski hats, baseball hats, and hoodies.<\/p>\n

And Trump is playing their song. They gathered in Concord to hear their favorite politician speak, just days before New Hampshire\u2019s first-in-the-nation primary on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

He\u2019ll secure the Texas border, they say with confidence. He says what he feels, and they like that. Like when Trump says he supports our troops far more than President Joe Biden or anyone else does.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019ll stand strong,\u201d said Heather Dalbec, a 39-year-old veteran from Sutton. \u201cI think a lot of people are a little too soft and I think he will actually stand for what he believes in and leave no question about it.\u201d <\/p>\n

Dalbec served in the Army from 2002 to \u201809, working in psychological operations and traveling around the world. She suffered a brain injury and feels what so many veterans feel: Trump should lead the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Trump is the guy,\u201d Dalbec said. \u201cHe\u2019s the one that we all need to unite around and support.\u201d <\/p>\n

Trump can do wrong, and he alluded to that 10 months before the 2016 election on Fifth Avenue in New York City, saying he could \u201cstand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and not lose any voters.\u201d <\/p>\n

These days, it appears that way, that his alleged wrongdoings playing out in court have had no effect on his poll numbers. Some believe those conflicts have only added to his popularity.<\/p>\n

His recent indictments \u2013 which include charges that Trump stole top secret documents before leaving the White House and tried to overturn the 2020 presidential election \u2013 and flair for unpredictable public appearances have morphed Trump into an anti-hero who can do no wrong in the eyes of his loyal following that wants to send him back to the White House, controversies and all.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a politician with a Teflon coating. Nothing sticks.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe gets things done, and that\u2019s all that matters,\u201d said Dave Noyes of Bow, 67. \u201cHe\u2019s ambitious and he never gives up.\u201d <\/p>\n

They look at Trump\u2019s numbers at the Iowa Caucus \u2013 he gathered 51 percent of the vote, with Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley both trailing by about 30 points \u2013 and believe Trump will win big in the Granite State.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he might win by a bigger margin than Iowa,\u201d said Noyes. \u201cIt\u2019s time to take care of that old geyser in the White House and replace him.\u201d <\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s third run for president feels unparalleled in American history, which is why Irene Choonsky and her 9-year-old twins stood near the back of the line, near the bus that features Trump\u2019s face on Rambo\u2019s body.<\/p>\n

The family drove to Portsmouth the night before the Concord rally to see Trump. They live in Kittery, Maine.<\/p>\n

They never got in after waiting a few hours.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey hit the capacity and we had to stop,\u201d Choonsky said, estimating they were about 12 people away from getting inside.<\/p>\n

Her twins, Jake and Katie, thought they were even closer.<\/p>\n

\u201cSix people,\u201d Jake said.<\/p>\n

Choonsky believes the issues surrounding gender identification and the use of bathrooms is insane and needs to be fixed. Trump will take care of that, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should be focusing on education, not gender problems,\u201d Choonsky said. \u201cThey want to push this down everybody\u2019s throat at a young age. I love that people can be themselves, but I don\u2019t think kids know what the hell they want.\u201d <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Kate Benner of Andover, like so many others, has been drawn to Trump for having what used to be called \u201cIT.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s a really big character,\u201d Benner said. \u201cYou can see the line that\u2019s here to see a big character. I think a lot of politicians these days are on their own side or special interests\u2019 side, and with Trump being so wealthy, it comes off like he doesn\u2019t need money from it, so he\u2019s really going to do what he says.\u201d <\/p>\n

The first people in line Friday night waited several hours to get in. Smiles and enthusiasm cut through the icy air. But the tough-guy image that Trump has created is never far away.<\/p>\n

At one point a fracas pierced the mood. A vendor and a Trump supporter threw punches at each other before they went their separate ways.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why people hate us,\u201d someone nearby said. \u201cStop.\u201d <\/p>\n

Protesters set up huge TV screens in the parking lot, comparing Trump to people like Adolph Hitler and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. A photo of Trump appeared near the end, matched with the words, \u201cI need a man who will use violence to seize power. So God made a dictator.\u201d <\/p>\n

No one paid attention. The clearings in front of the TVs were empty. The tension in the Trump orbit is palpable. Supporters feel mocked by those they see as members of the elitist left. They believe Biden stole the last election. Former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, detested by the right, labeled Trump supporters as \u201cdeplorables\u201d four years ago.<\/p>\n

His fans love it, embrace it. <\/p>\n

A school bus near the Grappone Center entrance was plastered with sayings, photos and caricatures, like a banner that read, \u201cDeplorables for Trump.\u201d A little boy urinating on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u2019s surname. Trump riding in a tank and holding a weapon. Trump\u2019s face on the body of Rambo, played by Sylvester Stallone, with muscles on top of muscles.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need someone with power and strength,\u201d Noyes, the Bow resident, said. \u201cTrump is a strong leader. We don\u2019t have that right now.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The line snaked from the Grappone Conference Center entrance into the parking lot, forming a giant \u2018S\u2019 of Donald Trump supporters exhaling frosty plumes, pinching their shoulders and smiling.The frigid temperatures Friday night didn\u2019t stand a chance…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":9989,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_newspack_byline_active":true,"_newspack_byline":"by [Author id=5]Ray Duckler[\/Author] Monitor columnist","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[540,8],"tags":[94,398,24,25],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[513],"class_list":["post-9988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homebox7-cm","category-news","tag-concord-nh","tag-edpick","tag-facebook","tag-primary-2024","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/42738109-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9988"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9990,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9988\/revisions\/9990"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9988"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fnewspack_spnsrs_tax&post=9988"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcoauthors&post=9988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}