Trump’s New Hampshire Rally Postponed Due to Tropical Storm

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump’s political rally Saturday in New Hampshire will be postponed as Tropical Storm Fay batters the Eastern Seaboard, the White House said.

The event -- which was the first rally planned after the president’s event in Tulsa drew lower-than-expected attendance amid fears over the coronavirus pandemic -- will be rescheduled in the coming weeks, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters traveling with the president to Florida on Friday.

The tropical storm made landfall along the Jersey Shore on Friday, prompting flash flood watches throughout the New York metro area.

Models from the National Hurricane Center show the storm expected to progress through the Northeast over the weekend, but current projections show that tropical storm strength winds of 39 mph or higher are unlikely to hit Portsmouth, where the rally was scheduled. The National Weather Service forecast for Portsmouth on Saturday calls for showers and a possible thunderstorm before 3 p.m., with a chance of rain in the late afternoon and evening and total rainfall between a half and three quarters of an inch.

That led Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s campaign to suggest that the Trump campaign had canceled the event to avoid low turnout at a second consecutive rally.

The Trump campaign stepped up health and safety measures for the New Hampshire rally, setting the event outdoors and saying they would strongly encourage attendees to wear masks to avoid infection from the coronavirus.

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