Trump stops in Happy Valley | News, Sports, Vacancies

UNIVERSITY PARK — Donald Trump finally got his moment at Madison Square Garden, but not before making his way through Happy Valley on Saturday.

With just over a week until Election Day, the former president took the stage Sunday at one of the nation’s most prominent venues, staging a hometown rally to deliver the final message of his campaign against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

The rally’s opening was a mixture of Trumpism and an extended clip from the 1970 film. “Patton” painting with an American flag and Trump in front of it “God Bless America” boomed from the speakers.

Long lines formed late Saturday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center with a mixture of Penn State and “Make America Great Again” clothes as hundreds of people waited for the doors to open at the former president’s campaign rally.

Despite a scheduled start time of 4 p.m., doors to the event opened at noon, with many attendees arriving early Saturday morning to take their places in line. By midday, thousands of people filled the Penn State arena wearing red hats, sweatshirts and flags.

“We love Penn State” Trump said this at the opening of the rally. He later welcomed 14 current and former Nittany Lion wrestlers to the stage and shook their hands.

A similar scene played out in the garden on Sunday. The arena was packed hours before Trump was scheduled to speak. Outside the arena, the sidewalks were crowded with Trump supporters wearing red MAGA hats. There was a strong security presence there. Streets were closed and access to Penn Station limited.

The rally is one of a series of Trump detours from battleground states, including a recent rally in Coachella, California, best known for the famous music festival named after the city, and one in May at the Jersey Shore. He campaigned in the South Bronx this summer.

Harris also traveled to states without battlefields to participate in major events designed to convey a national message. On Friday, she appeared in Houston with music superstar Beyoncé to talk about reproductive rights, and on Tuesday she will make her closing argument at the Ellipse in Washington, where Trump spoke ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

Trump was joined at the rally in New York by supporters including Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who has spent tens of millions of dollars to support his campaign.