Trump supporters hold downtown rally
Lee County is Trump Country, and nearly 200 of his supporters came out Saturday morning to show that support at a rally that started at Big John Shopping Center and ended up along Cape Coral Parkway.
They wore their “Make America Great Again” caps and waved American flags and Trump signs to passers-by on Cape Coral Parkway, many of whom honked their horns in support.
What the rally lacked in the way of a strong presence by local political leaders (that was the previous night with U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney), there were plenty of “just people” who either worked on his campaign locally or just wanted to show their support, young and old.
Roz Lesser, the Trump campaign co-chair during his run for president, said the idea of the event was to not only show support by waving signs, but also to counter the rallies that have occurred by those on the left and to keep the core of the supporting crew intact.
The event took just two weeks to organize, and it came at the right time, just after a successful address to Congress by Trump.
“We have a group of 1,000 volunteers from the campaign and we want to keep that group cohesive. We decided to have a simple event and maybe go to lunch someplace,” Lesser said. “We want to keep everyone involved so when Trump runs for a second term, we’re all in place and ready to go.”
The Big John’s portion of the rally was basically just the gathering place. They did the invocation, Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem before heading out to the streets.
There, it had the feel of a parade, with horns blaring at the throng of supporters. If there were any dissenters, they readily apparent. Lesser told the crowd if they were confronted by anyone, to please be civil.
Among the supporters was former Cape Coral council member Bill Deile, who came out to support the current administration and counteract the protests and “fake news.”
“People on the street are still upbeat, but we’re at the point where the president needs to fight back and put down the fake news and demands for resignation,” Deile said. “The left isn’t going to stop until they get shut down.”
Other Trump supporters let their feelings be known about who their man is.
“I support everything he does. I like his ideas and so far, so good,” Frank Paulin said. “I think a lot of the protesters are paid for and I think even Obama is behind all that.”
Jim Price appeared at the rally in a red, white and blue suit and wearing a Trump mask. He agreed with Paulin’s assertions that the left is responsible for the fake news and paid protests.
“These are real people. Everyone is out here volunteering their time and efforts,” Price said. “All these other protests are fake protests, so this is the real America.”
Amanda Mason brought her two children, Aiden, 6, and Liam, 8, to the rally, each with handmade signs showing their support.
“We wanted to support our president. We’re part of an online group and they let us know this was going on,” Mason said. “I find it very important to tell them what’s going on so they’re not ignorant about it.”