CINCINNATI, Ohio (CBSNewYork/AP) — Donald Trump kicked off a rally at an airplane hangar outside Dayton, Ohio, one day after protesters forced him to cancel an event in Chicago.
The billionaire businessman addressed the incident at the start of his rally, calling what took place at the University of Illinois at Chicago “a disgrace, if you want to know the truth.”
Trump says his supporters are “nice” and “great” people, but protesters he called “professionally-staged wise guys” were determined to cause problems. He says he was worried his backers would have gotten hurt.
Trump says, “we would’ve had a problem like you wouldn’t have believed.”
He added: “We made a decision. And I hated to do this, because frankly it wouldn’t have been easier to do. But I didn’t want to see anybody get hurt. You would have had a problem like they haven’t seen in a long time. Because we have people that are so amazing.”
A spokeswoman for Trump said a man tried to breach the security buffer at his event in Ohio, leading U.S. Secret Service agents to briefly rush the stage to surround the Republican presidential candidate.
The rally in Cincinnati is ON. Media put out false reports that it was cancelled. Will be great – love you Ohio!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 12, 2016
The protest at the UIC Pavilion west of downtown Chicago began with chanting, but soon turned physical with Trump supporters and opponents going at each other and fists flying. Protesters had ascended upon the campaign rally from the nearby University of Illinois at Chicago campus.
The announcement that the rally would be canceled came in around 6:30 p.m. Central Time — around half an hour after Trump had been expected to take the stage and with thousands of Trump supporters filling the space, CBS Chicago reported.
Coverage From CBS Chicago – Dana Kozlov Reports:
“I’m not a person that wants to see violence. I’m not a person that wants to see people hurt,” Trump said. “And that’s why I put out the statement before, and it said go home in peace.”
“The organized group of people, many of them thugs, who shut down our First Amendment rights in Chicago, have totally energized America!” he tweeted.
The organized group of people, many of them thugs, who shut down our First Amendment rights in Chicago, have totally energized America!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 12, 2016
On Saturday, Marco Rubio had some sharp words about Donald Trump and the mess at the canceled rally in Chicago.
Rubio said that some of the blame for what happened Friday night in Chicago lies with the protesters, but he says much of the divisiveness is in Trump’s hands, adding that Trump is feeding into some voters’ anger and bitterness and is manipulating that for votes.
The Florida senator is campaigning Saturday in his home state, which holds its presidential primary on Tuesday.
It is Clinton and Sanders people who disrupted my rally in Chicago – and then they say I must talk to my people. Phony politicians!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 12, 2016
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders also had some words about Trump, saying his heated language is inciting violent outbursts at his rallies, and it’s up to the billionaire businessman to stop it.
Sanders said what the “Trump campaign has been about is insulting Mexicans in a very crude way” and “insulting African-Americans.”
Trump is scheduled to speak on Saturday in Dayton and Cleveland, Ohio, and Kansas City, Missouri.
(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)