A woman wearing a “Release the Epstein Files” shirt was punched at Trump’s rally in Youngstown, Ohio. The president then mocked the protester’s weight.
A woman who interrupted Donald Trump’s sppech at a rally in Youngstown, Ohio, on Monday, October 12, was attacked by people in the crowd. The president then mocked her weight and referred to her as a man while she was being led out.
Videos from the rally show the woman, who was wearing a “Release the Epstein Files” shirt, being pushed to the ground by two men, one of whom jumped on her. She was punched in the face by an apparent Trump supporter, and one man was seen grabbing her by the hair and trying to force her face down.
Members of the crowd chanted “USA.” Law enforcement officers separated the people involved and escorted her out of the arena. According to Fox News, the man who punched her stayed inside and exchanged high-fives with other attendees.
The president commented on the protesters weight after she was assaulted
Trump, 80, referred to the protester as “he” and said: “He’s a paid protester. They’re all paid. They get paid by the lefties in order to destroy our country. They’re scum. But he’s going back home to Mom.”
“Look at him. Look at him. Terrible. Don’t we love law enforcement? Oh, he’s gotta go on a diet! He’s a fat guy. Wow. Wow. Gotta go on a diet fast. We all do,” he added.
On Tuesday, Youngstown Mayor Derrick McDowell condemned what happened. “It must be emphatically stated that senseless (political) violence has absolutely NO place in our community or in our democratic process,” he said. He told NBC News that Youngstown police weren’t at the event, and that security was provided by the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and the Secret Service.
Why the shirt got attention now
Trump and his Justice Department face bipartisan scrutiny over delays in releasing more documents tied to the investigations into Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender.
Trump has a long history of responding to hecklers at his rallies, often saying they’ll be in trouble with their parents when they get home. Last month in North Carolina, he spotted a protester being removed and said: “Where is he? Who is he? Show it to me. Show him. Let me see his face. Oh, it’s a she. Hello. She’s going home to mama.”
In August at a rally in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, he joked that a heckler was “going home to mom, gonna get scolded because mom is voting for us.” During his 2024 campaign, at a rally in Coachella, California, he suggested a female protester would “go back home to mommy” and “get the hell knocked out of her.”