Donald Trump IS having a campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla tonight…Thousands ARE there to hear and see him…

Public health experts issued dire warnings. Local officials expressed unease. The coronavirus cases continued to climb.

And still, they came.

President Trump’s most faithful supporters piled into tents or lounged in lawn chairs, some wearing masks and others dismissing the need for face coverings, as they waited hours and, in some cases, days to join in his return to the campaign trail. By Saturday afternoon, the line of voters waiting for Mr. Trump’s evening rally was bustling and steadily growing with attendees eager to fill the 19,000-seat BOK Center, defying public health recommendations.

Despite the adoring fans willing to risk illness to see him in this deep red state, Mr. Trump arrives in Tulsa at a moment of political peril. His poll numbers nationally and in critical battleground states have plummeted, he faces disapproval of his stewardship of the coronavirus and outrage over his posture toward peaceful protesters of police brutality, and he has struggled to press a clear case against Joseph R. Biden Jr., his Democratic opponent.

The rally itself had produced a chaotic several days in Tulsa, coming on the weekend of the Juneteenth holiday, which celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. Mr. Trump’s discordant stance toward the holiday — he originally was unaware of it, then later took credit for making it “very famous’’ — and his divisive rhetoric about Americans protesting against racial injustice had added to the fraught nature of the weekend in a city with a painful history for black residents.

His supporters waited for the rally around a mile from Greenwood Avenue, which in 1921 was the site of one of America’s worst racist massacres. Black Tulsans had gathered there on Friday to commemorate Juneteenth and many had denounced police brutality. A number of Trump backers, while expressing support for peaceful protesters, also argued that if the nation countenanced demonstrators congregating in large crowds, then they should be free to participate in the president’s rally without criticism — though public health experts have said that large indoor gatherings are more dangerous than outdoor events.

The Trump campaign on Saturday also acknowledged that six staff members had tested positive for the virus during routine testing ahead of the event.

“You have people who, for political reasons, will be great with a transgender rally in New York or a protest, but if you go to church or a Trump rally, well, you’ve got to be concerned about Covid,” said former Representative Sean Duffy of Wisconsin, who planned to attend as a Trump surrogate. He called the virus “real” and urged precautions, but added, “This rally is no less risky than the protests that were taking place over the last three weeks.”

The scene here on the sidewalks and roads near the arena offered a vivid illustration of the president’s power over the Republican base even when he is at his most vulnerable….

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In interviews, attendees said they viewed the president as a strong leader on the economy, despite millions being out of work during the pandemic. They appreciated his disdain for political correctness and praised his opposition to abortion rights, echoing views shared by Trump supporters in 2016.

More….

image…Erin Schaff/NY Times