Trump’s Florida Rally Interrupted by Protesters in Final Midterm Blitz - Newsweek

President Donald Trump used a Friday night rally in Florida to tout Republican candidates Byron Donalds and Ashley Moody, announce additional hurricane funding for the state and unleash a string of attacks on Democrats, actor Robert De Niro and audience hecklers.

Trump has been campaigning for a solid month in hopes of elevating Republican candidates in the midterms. Polls are tight in many states as Democrats hope to take control of the Senate and House.

"We have to win in four days, and it means everybody in our state needs to go out and vote," Donalds told the crowd. "There will be no sharia law here in Florida. We gotta get out and vote. We gotta get out and win. We gotta keep Florida free."

Trump told supporters he recently approved an additional $184 million in FEMA disaster funding for Florida's Panhandle after requests from Donalds and Moody.

"Could we get $184 million in additional FEMA hurricane relief funding for the Florida Panhandle?" Trump recalled being asked. "I love the Panhandle."

The declaration covered 15 counties in northwest Florida that suffered damage in Hurricane Isaias. Residents are eligible for federal assistance, including temporary housing, home repairs and other recovery aid.

In one of the night's more unexpected detours, Trump claimed entertainment industry figures who have spent years criticizing him are now privately asking for federal help as film and television production increasingly moves overseas.

Trump suggested he may support tax credits aimed at keeping production in the United States.

"Guys that have been saying bad crap about me for years are sitting up in my office. 'Sir, it's a great honor to be with you, sir,'" Trump said.

He argued that countries including Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom have lured productions away from Hollywood through government incentives.

Trump singled out actor Robert De Niro.

"Is Robert De Niro a moron? He's a moron," Trump said. "No, there's something wrong with him."

Trump went on to say he once liked De Niro's work but now finds him "gross" and criticized some of his more recent performances. The two have been exchanging insults for nearly a decade.

Newsweek reached out to De Niro's agent for comment.

The president also spent significant portions of the rally targeting Democratic politicians and political opponents.

Among them was Texas state Representative James Talarico, whom Trump called "a freak" while joking about his veganism. Talarico has leaned into being called a "freak" after being called such by his opponent Ken Paxton, with supporters donning "Tala-freak-o" merch. Talarico has also denied that he is a vegan, a false claim that Republicans repeat.

Trump also attacked former Republican-turned-Democrat David Jolly, calling him a "freaking loser" while criticizing his positions on guns and immigration.

He described Florida state Representative Angie Nixon as "a very low IQ person" and used the speech to renew attacks on Representative Ilhan Omar, saying she should resign from Congress.

Trump also took aim at Michigan Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed, again calling him "a jihadist" as he warned supporters against backing Democratic candidates he described as extremists. El-Sayed responded on X on October 8 to similar accusations by Trump, saying, "He knows my name is Abdul. He says it everyday. But he’s not just attacking me. He’s attacking all of us. He thinks so low of us. He thinks he can use my name and my faith to distract us from the suffering his policies are inflicting on us at the pump, at the grocery store, and at the doctor’s office. He thinks we don’t know any better."

Trump argued that Jewish and Black voters should not support the Michigan Democrat.

"If you're black or if you're Jewish and you vote for Abdul, you're not smart," Trump said. "Abdul is not a big fan of Jewish people and he's not a big fan of black people... I hope you're going to vote against him and send him back to where he came from."

However, while on the campaign trail, El-Sayed has visited several Black congregations. Along the way, he held a town hall at the Shrine of the Black Madonna to acknowledge the "tensions" between Black and Arab Americans, the Religion News Service reported. While there, he borrowed from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, saying, “I also ask that I am judged by the content of my character, not the color of my skin,” he said at the September 14 event, drawing applause.

Newsweek reached out to El-Sayed's campaign for comment.

Protesters interrupted the speech several times, prompting Trump to stop and address them directly.

Trump responded: "Loser! What a loser!"

Later, during remarks on immigration, he pointed to another demonstrator and dismissed him as "that dope."

The exchanges drew cheers from supporters and became a recurring theme throughout the rally.

He complained that news organizations have historically downplayed his crowd sizes, while highlighting attendance at events held by political rivals, including Senator Bernie Sanders.

"They don't want to mention my crowd size because crowd size means success," Trump said.

Hours prior to the rally, Florida authorities arrested a 21-year-old woman for threatening on social media to shoot Trump during the Daytona Beach rally.

Allison Albro posted a selfie on Instagram with a caption reading: “Going to the trump rally in my city tmr so I can shoot him with my Glock! Wish me luck guys!!,” according to Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood.

"Today she’s sitting in jail on charges of written threats to kill and unlawful use of a communications device. I would strongly advise anyone else thinking of posting a 'joke' along these lines to think twice," he wrote.

Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gray R. Thomas