Trumpchella

“Donald Trump does not align with the values of this city.” - Coachella Mayor Steven Hernandez

Yet over 100,000 people showed up in 103 degree heat to show their support. We decided Saturday morning to be some of those people and set off from LA in search of The Don.

I have always loved Palm Springs something about it feels so free and wide open. I’m drawing on some of those Coachella and Stagecoach nights when the light is just right and you fall in love with everything. Taking in the water from the springs is also wonderful. A favorite memory comes to mind at Two Bunch Palm, a birthday get away for my dear friend and we spotted Liv Tyler and her mom all of us in bathrobes in the dining room. I was obsessed with her in my late teens and twenties seeing her all those years later still gave me a high school rush much like I’m feeling now en route to the Trump Rally. Another interesting thing about Two Bunch Palm are the bullet holes left by Al Capone in one of the bungalows, as we neared the event I started to worry about bullets myself, first Butler then Palm Beach. For this rally three parking lots were set up for arrivals. That way everyone is checked in at the lots and then again at the gate. By the time we made it the first lot it was already closed, not wanting to give up so easily we attempted the second gate. This time the officers let us join the line for the bus.

The energy was electric. So many different vendors with shirts, hats and flags for sale. One even sold pencils with a bullet tip. My love for gas station trinkets was ignited and I found myself sort of laughing at the whole thing but also felling deeply proud of these patriots. It was almost 3pm now and they said the busses would stop soon. People had been in line for hours and thousands still waited. I spoke to one fireman and he said a lady had to be taken to the hospital and as they drove away she wept because she would not get to see Mr Trump. We lined up but soon realized it was hopeless to make it to the Ranch and just sort of wandered the lot as if it were some tailgate for the big game. I loved chatting with people and taking photos of the whole spectacle. Some of the outfits were outrageous but one shirt stuck out to me “Too Big to Rig” I think double the amount of people showed up compared to what media is reporting. They are just counting who got into the Ranch not everyone who was still waiting and certainly not everyone who came out even the streets were lined as motorcade passed en route to the venue. That’s why I like actually being there the media down plays how large his audience is but if he can pull this kind of a crowd in a deeply blue part of the country if gives me hope for Nov. 5th.

The night before I fretted over what to wear. I went with a black two piece top and skirt my mother recently gave me. It is reminiscent of 1960’s style I decide to wear it in honor of Ethal Kennedy. There was one person missing from this whole affair and I consider how different this afternoon would be if Bobby and Team Kennedy were in attendance. But they of course headed East to pay final respects to his Mother. It hurt to bow out of the race but it was the right thing to do. I’m still organizing my thoughts on all the lawsuits and want to make sure my facts are straight before I break down the whole Kennedy campaign and my small role. What is beautiful to me is that two very strong willed men have put their differences aside for the greater good. Just this morning I read how the media is once again gas lighting Bobby, this time saying he is exaggerating the issue of chronic disease. And another report down playing the man they arrested with loaded guns at one check point. Claiming oh he’s harmless and clearly a Trump supporter if he has 3 loaded guns. He also had 4 fake passports, a fake VIP pass, and an unregistered vehicle. Since it’s California he was released hours later with little to no bail, it’s unclear, but the fact he is roaming free is astonishing. Deciding to call it quits we loaded up and headed to our friend’s house where we could watch it on TV.

“I stand before you today in the heart of deep majestic, Coachella Valley.” I thought it an interesting way for Trump to start his rally, I don’t think anyone has ever seen his mystical side. Perhaps, it is an attempt to appeal to California voters? I don’t think he’ll have to try too hard. People forget that outside of Los Angeles and San Francisco the state is mostly farm land and these wonderful farmers and workers have been hit so hard by big city politics. I feel like a large portion of the crowd are disgruntled Democrates who realized their leaders might not have the farmlands best interests at heart.

(I was upset when we first left the parking lot but turns out poolside rallies are pretty great too)

The former President goes on to outline how he will not only save California but this great nation. After the rally Team Trump released the below photo, a play on the famous Coachella Music Festival line up. I will share this with anyone who asks, “What about his policies?” As a woman, I have been getting reemed for my support of Trump. People were mad when I supported Bobby because they worried he would take votes from Biden. Now that Bobby has joined forces with Trump and of course Elon, Tulsi, and a great line up of innovative thinkers and doers they want to play the abortion card or the racist card. I learned working for Bobby that 35% of African American business have closed due to lockdowns and most likely they will never return. I could go on and on with facts and figures but most people have their dedicated news sources and don’t want to be challenged in their thinking. That makes me want to circle back to Bobby and others putting their egos aside to join Trump. In California hippie speech “releasing the ego” refers to the practice of letting go of your self-centered identity, allowing you to access a deeper level of consciousness by detaching from the thoughts and feelings that define your ego, which can lead to greater awareness, compassion, and connection with others and the world around you; essentially, it's about moving beyond the limited perspective of "me" to experience a more expansive sense of self. My personal hope is that no matter who wins we will be able to achieve this next stage of reality. Until then, See you on the road…

*photo credits. The first one is from the Desert Sun, the local Coachella paper, the aerial shot is from The NY Times, and the rest are mine. We also stopped at In-N-Out as we neared the rally and the crowd was decked in their star spangled best. I took a photo of an Evil Knievel type suit on a young man and cut and pasted it to another photo I love by Korbin Bielski. It made me laugh how much this represents CA.