MSNBC has been slammed for comparing Donald Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden with a 1939 Nazi gathering at the same venue.
Host Jonathan Capehart recalled the Nazi rally when speaking about Trump’s event on Sunday, saying that ‘in 1939, more than 20,000 supporters of a different fascist leader, Adolf Hitler, packed the Garden for a so-called pro-America rally.’
MSNBC showed images of the Nazi rally at the Garden as Capehart accused Trump of holding a fascist event at the iconic venue.
Capehart added: ‘Against that backdrop of history, Donald Trump – the man who has threatened to use the military against opponents he calls “enemies from within, who has threatened to use the troops to quell what he says are lawless cities and to use those troops to carry out mass deportations of immigrants – is once again turning Madison Square Garden into a staging ground for extremism.’
Social media users expressed outrage at MSNBC over the comparison, with many pointing out that that MSG has held many political events in the past, including the 1992 Democratic National Convention.
Host Jonathan Capehart recalled the Nazi rally when speaking about Trump’s event on Sunday
MSNBC showed images of the Nazi rally at the Garden as Capehart accused Trump of holding a fascist event at the iconic venue
One X user wrote: ‘MSNBC just called 20.000 Trump supporters nazi’s. Let that sink in.’
‘They must have forgotten that the DNC held their convention there for Bill Clinton,’ said another.
A third added: ‘MSNBC is a shameful extension of the Democrat Party of hate and division.’
But it wasn’t just MSNBC that made the controversial comparison – democratic candidate for VP Tim Walz said: ‘There’s a direct parallel to a big rally that happened in the mid-1930s at Madison Square Garden.’
Walz added: ‘And don’t think that he doesn’t know for one second exactly what they’re doing there.’
Social media users including women’s rights activist Riley Gaines expressed outrage at MSNBC over the comparison
Trump’s niece Mary Trump also compared his event at MSQ to a Nazi rally, writing: ‘So, we’re really doing this again. Eyes wide open.’
MSNBC’s Capehart is no stranger to on-air controversies – back in January he cried as he reflected on the memory of January 6.
The emotional episode unfolded while Capeheart was in the midst of promoting former DC police officer Michael Fanone’s book on the three-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Back in 2021, on the eve of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, the same MSNBC host announced that he believed that Trump supporters are more of a threat than the Taliban or ISIS.
Donald Trump embraces Melania Trump during a rally at Madison Square Garden
Many pointed out that that MSG has held many political events in the past, including the 1992 Democratic National Convention.
Capehart called out ‘MAGA and the domestic threat’, which he said was far ‘more worrisome than any foreign threat’, during an appearance at PBS NewsHour.
Trump’s rally on Sunday at Madison Square Garden follows a long line of political events at the storied New York City arena.
The Garden has hosted both Democratic and Republican National Conventions since the 1800s, and in 1939, thousands joined back-to-back pro-Nazi and Communist Party rallies in the lead-up to World War II.
Marilyn Monroe took the stage in 1962 to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to President John F. Kennedy, adding to the lore surrounding what the New York Knicks announcer calls ‘the world’s most famous arena!’