Election
Lara Trump Says 'Dead Cats' Are Voting for Dems at 'Trump Pride' Rally
The president's daughter-in-law spread voter misinformation at an event for gay Republicans.
October 17 2020 2:55 PM EST
May 31 2023 5:33 PM EST
dnlreynolds
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The president's daughter-in-law spread voter misinformation at an event for gay Republicans.
Lara Trump gave a hiss-terical speech spreading voter misinformation at a rally with gay Republicans.
Billed as "Trump Pride," the campaign event in Newtown Square, Pa., featured Richard Grenell, the former U.S. ambassador to Germany and member of the Trump cabinet, in addition to President Trump's daughter-in-law.
Trump, taking the stage with a rainbow "Trump Pride" backdrop, alleged that Democrats are attempting voter fraud by fabricating mail-in ballots -- a repeated refrain from the president, despite assurances from his FBI director that there is no evidence of any such coordinated efforts.
Lara Trump, the wife of Eric, went one step further, however, saying that ballots with the names of dead felines are being used to vote for Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate.
"Cats that have been dead are getting votes in the mail. But this is what they are doing now, they are trying to rig it," Trump said. "They know that on November 3, that map is going to be bright red, ladies and gentlemen. But they are trying desperately to say, 'Oh wait, we got the dead cat. Here is his ballot. He's voting for Joe Biden.' That is their plan."
In fact, Biden has little need of dead cats; he's currently polling at a national lead, although his campaign has warned against complacency in the final stretch of the campaign. And mail-in ballots, favored by blue-leaning voters, are merely a safer way to vote during a pandemic.
Earlier this week, the "Trump Pride" event made headlines due to the vagueness of its invitation. "Look at this closeted event, in which neither 'gay' nor 'LGBTQ' is mentioned, Trump himself is not involved, and the whole thing is in code: 'Pride' in rainbow letters,'" noted gay SiriusXM host Michelangelo Signorile. "They've not announced this anywhere, lest the religious right find out."
The event itself has not received much coverage, as the headlines this week have been dominated by the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump's conservative pick whose record indicates she will threaten LGBTQ+ rights in the nation's highest court.
Nevertheless, Lara Trump tried to argue in Newtown Square that "Donald Trump has been the most pro-gay American president in history. That is a true story." On the contrary, The Advocate and other organizations have documented dozens of anti-LGBTQ+ actions carried out by the Trump administration.
This last-minute pitch to right-leaning gay people looks to be part of a broader strategy by the Trump campaign to chip away at support for Democrats by claiming the party has taken the votes of marginalized groups for granted. Pennsylvania, of course, is, a swing-state in the upcoming presidential election.
"For so long, the Democrats ... thought they automatically got the Black and Latino vote. They thought they automatically got the gay vote. No more, Democrats. We are taking back everybody's vote," Lara Trump said.
However, a new survey from GLAAD shows 76 percent of likely LGBTQ+ voters will pull the lever for Joe Biden -- and they will do so because the majority has a favorable opinion of the Democrat, who is a demonstrated and vocal ally of the community instead of a foe.
Watch the remarks from Grenell and Lara Trump below.