Donald Trump is accusing Hillary Clinton of “copying” his penchant for holding campaign rallies at airport hangars.
Do people notice Hillary is copying my airplane rallies - she puts the plane behind her like I have been doing from the beginning.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 20, 2016
But campaign veterans note it’s a hardly unique idea.
Katie Packer, a leading Trump critic and veteran of Mitt Romney’s 2012 campaign, sent out a picture of a 2012 Romney event at an airport hangar rally, writing on Twitter that it was one of at least 100 the candidate had done.
“My first was in 1988 with 41,” Packer added, referring to former President George H.W. Bush, who also made news today for reportedly voting for Hillary Clinton.
@realDonaldTrump this was one of a hundred @MittRomney did in 2012. My first was in 1988 with '41. pic.twitter.com/7gEN8ylBMo
— Katie Packer (@katiepack) September 20, 2016
Packer, a Republican strategist who served as deputy campaign manager on Romney’s campaign, earlier this year launched an anti-Trump group, Our Principles PAC.
Also, for the record, as others noted: Clinton’s airport hangar event on Monday was actually a press availability for reporters, not a rally.
Trump does love the drama of an airport hangar rally. His latest was Saturday night in Colorado Springs, Colo. As the crowd in the hangar waited, Trump’s plane landed and zipped by the open berth.
The soundtrack to the movie "Air Force One" was queued up, and the crowd roared, holding up phones.
Trump paused as he stepped off the plane, clapping and raising his fist.
Presidents have been campaigning in front of their airplanes since FDR, you boob. https://t.co/mvUUiho7fa
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) September 20, 2016
Romney’s chief former chief strategist cheekily noted that such stops predate airplanes, tweeting a photograph of Harry S Truman’s 1948 whistle stop train tour across the U.S.
Lesley Clark: 202-383-6054, @lesleyclark
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