Trump to Hold Rally in Wilkes-Barre for “Pennsylvania Trump Ticket”

Former President Donald Trump will be in NEPA next month to rally support for what he calls the “Pennsylvania Trump ticket,” which includes Republican candidates Doug Mastriano, Dr. Mehmet Oz, and Jim Bognet.

Former President Donald Trump will take a break from falsely accusing the FBI of unlawfully raiding his home to hold a rally in Wilkes-Barre for three Pennsylvania Republicans who comprise what he calls the “Pennsylvania Trump ticket.”

The “Save America” rally will be held at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday, Sept. 3. Trump is expected to speak at 7 p.m. to boost Republican candidates Doug Mastriano for governor, Dr. Mehmet Oz for US Senate, and Jim Bognet, who is running against US Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Lackawanna) to represent Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District.

A press release says the event kicks off at 8 a.m. and will feature vendors, entertainment, and other special guest speakers. 

The rally comes a little more than two months before the general election in November and amid reports of Republicans, Trump included, questioning the strength of some of the party’s candidates.

Both Mastriano and Oz trail their Democratic opponents by double digits. A recent Fox News poll shows Mastriano behind Josh Shapiro by 10 points and John Fetterman leading Oz by 11 points. Cartwright has a slim 6-point lead over Bognet according to a new poll conducted by his campaign.

While Trump may take the stage to support all three of the GOP candidates, behind the scenes Trump has questioned his choice to endorse Oz. In fact, according to a report in Rolling Stone, the former president has come to the conclusion that Oz is going to “f-cking lose” unless something drastically changes.

Oz has faced a brutal onslaught recently from both Democrats and Republicans.

The National Republican Senate Committee recently pulled over $7.5 million in ads for Oz in Pennsylvania, essentially abandoning the Oz campaign at its lowest moment.

Meanwhile, the Fetterman campaign has seized on every opportunity to portray Oz as a wealthy, out-of-touch outsider from New Jersey, oftentimes using Oz’s own words and videos against him. Fetterman has taken Oz to task for owning multiple properties, benefiting from a tax break incentive for wealthy homeowners on his multi-million dollar home in the commonwealth, and not being “in touch” with real Pennsylvanians after Oz made a disastrous video inside a grocery store highlighting the rising cost of food.

Mastriano has been an outspoken supporter of Trump and said the former president asked him to run for governor. He has made headlines recently for walking out of his interview with the Jan. 6 committee without answering questions; being the “point person” in Trump’s fake elector scheme to overturn the 2020 election results; and using campaign money to pay for advertising  on a conspiracy theorist and antisemitic site.

Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis, seen by many as a legitimate threat against Trump securing the GOP nomination for a 2024 White House run, rallied for Mastriano last week in Pittsburgh. 

Bognet was a political appointee for the Trump administration. Trump has praised Bognet as “pro-wall, pro-life, and pro-gun.”