The upcoming U.S. presidential election campaign is marked by its bizarre moments, especially those involving Donald Trump. Highlighted are the top five peculiar incidents from the 2024 campaign, including Trump’s outlandish rhetoric about cows and windows, an awkward dance during a serious moment at a rally, absurd claims linking children’s changes after school to gender reassignment surgery, inflammatory remarks about Puerto Rico, and a viral scandal regarding his comments on Haitian immigrants allegedly mistreating pets.
No matter how voters choose on Tuesday, November 5, the ongoing campaign for the U.S. presidency is shaping up to be one of the most unusual in history. Donald Trump, 78, has seemingly strived to push the limits of bizarre statements, insults, and misrepresentations nearly every day in recent weeks. Here are the top five most eccentric moments from the 2024 U.S. election race.
5. Democrats Want to Ban Cows and Windows
Let’s kick things off with a prime example of Trump’s distinctive campaign rhetoric. Four years ago, the duo of Joe Biden, 81, and Kamala Harris, 60, introduced their vision for a new ‘Green Deal’, aimed at transforming the U.S. economy toward environmental sustainability. They proposed collaborating with farmers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Trump stripped the plan of any factual basis and reframed it as: Democrats want to ban cows—just like they want to eliminate windows from homes. Recently, he resurrected the narrative of the so-called ‘Democratic cow destruction plan’ during a rally in Las Vegas. And Trump knows that what he says in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas.
4. A Dance for Collapsed Voters
Franz Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria’ is an internationally recognized piece often played at funerals, intended to lend dignity to the otherwise somber event. In mid-October, Trump attended a rally in Pennsylvania where two attendees collapsed from the heat in the hall—perhaps partly due to Trump’s fiery rhetoric. He halted the town hall session and had the DJ play Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria’. Was it a dignified moment? In conjunction with the 70s disco hit ‘YMCA’, one might imagine Schubert turning over in his grave multiple times. Trump, on the other hand, danced along to his quirky playlist for about half an hour, generating headlines in the process.
3. Gender Changes in School
It is true that children sometimes come home from school changed in various ways. The causes may range from puberty, bad grades, bullying, or teachers—rarely do they involve outpatient gender reassignment surgeries. Trump saw things differently in August during a speech in Milwaukee when he criticized ‘inappropriate content’ and ‘indoctrination’ in public schools. Then he told a story about ‘Jimmy.’ Parents send their boy off to school in the morning with cheerful wishes, only for him to return in the afternoon ‘after a brutal operation’ resembling sex reassignment. ‘What the hell is happening to our country?’, Trump declared. Many listeners must have wondered what was going on with Trump that day.
2. A Different Kind of Trash Talk
Trash talk is a sports term used to demoralize an opponent until they feel compelled to leave the field. The last days of the 2024 election campaign were marked by a different kind of trash talk. At a rally in New York on October 28, the ‘comedian’ Tony Hinchcliffe, invited by Trump, referred to Puerto Rico as a ‘floating garbage island in the ocean.’ This insulted around 1.7 million Puerto Ricans across the U.S. President Biden then referred to Republican voters as ‘garbage’—a prime opportunity for Trump. He capitalized on it by donning a garbage worker’s vest and stepping into a MAGA-branded garbage truck at the end of the gangway of his campaign plane. He continued his orange-themed ‘trash talk’ at an event in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
1. Cat Feeding in Springfield
Springfield doesn’t need any extra fame; for fans of ‘The Simpsons’, the fictional home of their comic favorites is already the center of the universe. Perhaps Trump was trying to elevate the profile of lesser-known Springfields across the U.S., as ‘Springfield’ is among the most common place names in America. However, since the only TV debate between him and Kamala Harris in September, nothing has been the same—not for all the Springfields or the people living there, and certainly not for cats and dogs. Trump’s unfounded claim that Haitian immigrants prefer to eat their pets instead of feeding them went viral in every sense of the word. The song ‘Eating the Cats’ by The Kiffness, inspired by Trump’s statements, racked up millions of views worldwide within hours, earning a clear number one spot on the list of bizarre election moments.