Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump went head-to-head with FoxNews’ GOP presidential candidate debate Thursday evening, hosting his own rally in support of veterans.
Trump initially said he would “probably” show up at FoxNews’ debate Tuesday, but later that day he said he was going to skip out on the FoxNews debate, calling moderator Megyn Kelly a “lightweight.”
Trump was disgruntled over a FoxNews statement which said he would “replace the Cabinet with his Twitter followers,” saying the statement was the final straw.
"That childishness put me over the top,” he said.
Instead, Trump told the press he would hold an event for wounded warriors instead, and on Thursday, Trump was a man of his word. The business mogul held his own rally at Drake University, and in 24 hours said he had already raised $6 million for wounded veterans.
Rally attendees packed the auditorium in Des Moines, causing the university to send out a statement earlier today warning those interested in going to the rally that they might not be able to get in because Trump’s campaign had over-ticketed the rally.
“Fire code limits occupancy of Sheslow Auditorium to approximately 700 persons,” wrote Drake University. “Therefore, based on our understanding of the number of tickets distributed, only a small percentage of ticket holders will be admitted into the auditorium.”
The packed house clapped and cheered Trump’s name as he spoke onstage, chanting his name repeatedly.
"When you're treated badly you have to stick up for your rights," Trump said. "And that's what our country has to do."
Trump said Fox News had apologized for its statement, but added it was too late.
“We wouldn't have even been here if it weren't for our vets,” Trump told a cheering crowd.
Although he was the headliner, Trump wasn’t the only politician who came out for the wounded warrior event. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who won the Iowa Caucus in 2008, also appeared at the rally alongside former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum.
"I had nothing to do at 8pm tonight,” joked Huckabee, who has failed to gain much traction in this year’s presidential primary. “It worked great for me.”
Veterans of all ages also showed their full support to Trump, saying he was a committed candidate who
"Donald J. Trump said he was going to do this and he's done it,” said army veteran Ernie Ratcliffe, who drove all the way from Kansas City, Missouri to show up at the Trump rally. “He's a man of his word.”
Wounded veterans spoke highly of Trump’s ability to “get things done,” saying the rally was an indicator of Trump’s efficiency since his campaign team organized the event in less than 24 hours.
The GOP frontrunner seemed upbeat about his future campaign despite being MIA onstage with his competitors.
"We're going to win again,” he told the crowd. “We're going to win at every single level.”
Even though his campaign team organized the event in a time crunch, Trump seemed pleased with the end result.
""Isn't that better than this debate that's going on? They're all sleeping," he said. "It turned out to be a phenomenal night."
To Trump, his message of supporting veterans was more important than taking the stage for a debate with his fellow Republicans.
"You veterans are incredible people,” he told vets at the rally. “Brave beyond comprehension."
Trump said he had already given $1 million to veterans, but it was not clear how much money would be doled out to veterans groups from the rally.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
