At least 18 protesters were removed from Donald Trump’s rally in San Antonio after repeatedly interrupting the event, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said.
Authorities or security escorted people from Freeman Coliseum as demonstrators drew boos from the crowd. No arrests were made, although two people were issued criminal trespass warnings and everyone involved was told to leave the premises.
The disruption began fewer than 10 minutes into the president’s speech, when one person left the area in front of the stage while shouting. A man wearing a red hat appeared to grab the person’s hair, sparking a physical confrontation before other attendees separated them.
After the demonstrator had left the venue, Mr Trump asked: “Is there anything like a Trump rally?”
He then said: “He’s going back home to mom right now. What he doesn’t know is that his mom voted for Trump.”
Several more people were escorted out over the following hour, with law enforcement or security intervening as the crowd jeered. In some incidents, supporters and demonstrators had to be separated after becoming involved in physical altercations.
At least one person was handcuffed as officers led him from the coliseum. Mr Trump mocked some of those removed, saying one had “got to lose a lot of weight” while describing others as “really bad-looking people”.
Trump rally focused on Texas Senate contest
The event marked Mr Trump’s third visit to Texas in recent weeks to support Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton, who is facing a close race against Democratic candidate James Talarico.
Mr Trump spent much of his speech attacking Mr Talarico, a state lawmaker seeking to become the first Democrat to win a statewide race in Texas in more than three decades. He portrayed him as too liberal for the state and said a victory would turn Texas into a “dirty, failing, crime-ridden third-world dumping ground”.
He also focused on immigration, highlighting the fall in unauthorised border crossings in recent years. The rally lasted for well over an hour.
