Trump fans show up to support president
PENN TWP — “House of the Rising Sun” and “Space Oddity” boomed out over the crowd gathering under the giant American flags hoisted from cranes on Saturday at Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport.
Multiple video screens flashed messages welcoming President Donald Trump. Cries of “Drain the Swamp!” and “Four More Years!” rose from the president's supporters.
Perhaps because of Halloween, those supporters included one dressed as a cow and another as Chewbecca the Wookie.
Among the throng of supporters was George Natili of Butler, who was attending his third Trump rally this year.
He'd also been to earlier rallies in Scranton and Latrobe.
“This is my second U.S. president,” said Natili. “I saw JFK when he went through Butler when he was campaigning at the time.
“I am a Trump supporter, and the history is so important. We have to preserve it and pass it along to the younger generation,” he said.
“I'm not worried about catching COVID,” said Natili, who chose not to wear a face mask. “I figured I'd be dead by now.
“But this is it. No more rallies. The next step is the voting booth,” he added.
Cindy White of Boyers said she voted for Trump in 2016 and will again this year.“I was a Democrat, and I changed my party this year. I didn't like where the party was going,” she said.As for wearing a mask, she said she didn't need one. “I have a good immune system, and I haven't been sick in five years.”Husband-and-wife supporters of the president, Greg and Vernie Young of West Sunbury had different reasons for not wearing masks Saturday.“I'm not worried about COVID. I think I had it. It sure felt like I had it last winter,” Greg Young said.Vernie Young said, “It's just like the flu. There is nothing you can do about it.“If you have health concerns, you should stay in and not go out. It's a life choice,” she said.Vernie Young said when the state shut down businesses earlier in the year, the effect was devastating on her floral shop. She didn't want to see that happen again.“If you have risk factors, you should take precautions,” she said. “If you are healthy, there is no reason you can't be out there doing what you want to be doing. You can't live in fear.”Arlene Fusko of Sarver was there to back the president and said she wasn't letting fear of COVID-19 keep her away.“I'm not worried about COVID-19. I think it will be over after the election,” said Fusko, who chose not to wear a mask. “Not that the virus will disappear, but the games will stop. It's a flu just like any other flu.”Trump backer Stacey Daugharthy, office manager for the airport authority, was masked and keeping out of the crowd, but it wasn't for fear of contracting COVID-19.“I'm not concerned about the virus, but I'm not a big fan of crowds. I was in there,” she said gesturing to where the crowd was thickening. “It was just too much.”She wanted to be at the rally to see the end result of a week of hard work to make the event a reality.Daugharthy said that while she was not involved in the problem-solving, “it's been one of the biggest honors of my life to witness the planning process this week. It made for some long nights.”
Emery Yoder Jr., Christine Byler and Rosa Coblentz wanted to see the rally too, and had made the 90-minute drive from Punxsutawney with their friends. Or rather, someone had driven them and their friends because as Amish they aren't allowed to operate a vehicle.Coblentz said it shouldn't be surprising to see Amish at a political rally.“We have to look out for our lives too,” she said.They gave various reasons for supporting the president.“He's a Republican,” Byler said.Yoder added, “He keeps the economy going.”Just outside the airport gates, Heather Traeger of Cochranton waited on her walker for her cousin, Courtney Lynne of West Middlesex, to come back from their car.Traeger said she had to use the walker to travel the two miles from where they parked their car to the airport.But then, the cousins hit a snag when entering, said Traeger — the Secret Service agent found her gun.“I had a concealed carry in my purse. I forgot it was in there,” Traeger said. “They checked to make sure I had a license, made sure I was good to go, and then told me to put the gun back in the car.”Traeger said that despite having fibromyalgia, several autoimmune disorders, rheumatoid arthritis and being prediabetic, she isn't wearing a mask and isn't concerned about COVID-19. “I'm not scared of something that has a 99.9% survival rate,” she said.
