Former President Donald Trump – who will be on the ballot again this November – is coming to Temple University’s North Philadelphia campus this weekend for a campaign rally.
The Republican nominee is set to speak Saturday night at the Liacouras Center, the college’s Broad Street arena. Pennsylvania, as usual, is expected to play a key role in the general election, which pits Trump against President Joe Biden.
Trump, who was recently convicted of 34 felony counts related to a New York hush money trial, will use the event to “highlight how Biden’s weak presidency is devastating American families,” according to a statement on his campaign website. Inflation, immigration and crime are among the other topics likely to be brought up at the rally.
Temple leaders, perhaps in response to criticism, sent a message to students and staff Saturday stating that the university has “a policy of making appropriate spaces available for rent to third-party organizations for these events regardless of their political party or stance.”
“In a presidential election year, it is common for political campaigns to hold large-scale events on college campuses,” Richard Englert, Temple president, and Ken Kaiser, senior vice president and chief operating officer, said in the letter.
“Temple is committed to protecting the First Amendment including freedom of speech and assembly,” they added. “This means that Temple fosters an environment open to a diversity of thought, opinion and peaceful expression.”
The university administrators stated that allowing Trump to organize an event is not an endorsement. Englert and Kaiser said the Liacouras Center is managed by a third-party firm and that Temple will not be covering any costs connected with the rally.
Biden visited the North Philadelphia campus in 2018, prior to his presidential run but not before rumors of his potential candidacy began to spread.
So far, polling data generally shows a slim advantage in Pennsylvania for Trump, who won the commonwealth in 2016 and lost to Biden in 2020.
Earlier this month, the Trump campaign opened an office in Holmesburg, its first in the state, as part of an effort to recruit Black supporters.
Biden, a frequent visitor to the city, and his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris, came May 29 to speak at Girard College in North Philadelphia. The campaign event also served as the start of an initiative to engage Black voters.
