Ahead of former president Donald Trump’s visit to Albuquerque Thursday, the Democratic Party of New Mexico held an event aimed at addressing his policies and showing support for Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump’s rally will take place at CSI Aviation near the Albuquerque International Sunport, which is his first time back to New Mexico since his 2019 visit to Rio Rancho.
U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury criticized Trump’s policies on everything from LGBTQ+ rights to abortion access, and made it clear she was trying to “send a message…his hate is not welcome in New Mexico.”
“While we love and support all of our communities and their ability to have free speech and to exercise their democratic rights,” she said. “It's critical that people understand what Donald Trump actually stands for and why his message of hate, his economic plan and the things that he is bringing to the table in this election are not only dangerous for New Mexicans, but dangerous for our country.”
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller pointed out Trump still owes the city almost half a million dollars from being forced to shut down a large part of the city so Trump could stay at a hotel in 2019, which is a request that has never been made by another candidate.
“I think people forget that it was much less about things like security and police. It was more about the fact that no one could actually go about their daily lives downtown for an entire day,” he said.
New Mexico Speaker of the House Javier Martinez told KUNM while he supports the first amendment right for Trump to hold his rally, he thinks Trump’s message is harmful.
“This is a person who represents an incredibly scary threat to our democracy. And as far as I'm concerned, he's free to move around as he pleases, including coming to Albuquerque for a rally.” he said. “But as you can tell, I will not be voting for him, and I implore my fellow New Mexicans to reject them soundly, which I fully expect we will.”
Doors open at 8 a.m. for the Trump rally, with parking being available starting at 5 a.m. at three outside locations with shuttles to the event, after previous parking fell through.
Support for this coverage comes from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
