Presidents, conventions, and the Nazis: A political history of the “garden”

Madison Square Garden, where Donald J. Trump and running mate J.D. Vance are scheduled to hold a fundraiser and rally Sunday, has a long history of political events. Some people have become peaceful. Some people don’t.

This is where Marilyn Monroe sang “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” to 45-year-old John F. Kennedy in May 1962, where her dress shone through so much It is also where Bill Clinton gave his inaugural address. Fleetwood Mac’s “Don’t Stop” was performed at the 1992 Democratic National Convention. It was here in 1936 that President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave one of his most important speeches, signaling a shift toward a more openly combative campaign.

President Roosevelt called his opponents in the banking and military industries “enemies of peace,” in a now eerily familiar voice. “Never in our history have there been so many forces united behind a single candidate as they are today,” President Roosevelt said. crowd. “They are united in hating me, and I welcome their hatred.”

But much of the commentary this weekend focused on the more than 20,000 people (many wearing Nazi armbands) who filled the Garden for a “pro-American rally” in support of Adolf Hitler. It is expected to focus on another historical precedent from 1939. At the time, the Garden was located in the third of four locations at 50th Street and Eighth Avenue.

Trump’s rally came days after the president’s longest-serving chief of staff, John F. Kelly, said the former president fits the definition of a fascist. Trump called Kelly a “total degenerate” and a “scumbag” on his platform, Truth Social.