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Did Donald Trump pay people to attend White House rally? Internet calls it 'elitist' Hatch Act violation

Trump addressed the crowd from the balcony overlooking the South Lawn where Candace Owens' BLEXIT Foundation was hosting a pro-police rally

President Donald Trump's first public appearance after testing positive for Covid-19 was addressing a gathering at the White House. On Saturday, October 10, Trump greeted his supporters who assembled at the White House.

As stated by CBS News, White House spokesman Judd Deere informed that the event was an “official” meet, and “the campaign is not involved in this”. The attendees were invited by the White House, Deere said. Though it is being alleged that using the White House for a partisan political event is a violation of the Hatch Act, Deere claimed that the event had “no Hatch Act implication” because it was run by the White House and not the campaign. According to the report, the Hatch Act does not apply to the president or vice-president, but it does apply to any other executive branch officials who are involved. The POTUS has been accused of disregarding the act, most recently during the Republican National Convention.

Trump addressed the crowd from the balcony overlooking the South Lawn where Candace Owens' BLEXIT Foundation was hosting a pro-police rally. The POTUS told the crowd, “We have to have law and order. I want to thank the BLEXIT Foundation for organizing this event, and especially your two founders, two friends of mine, great people Candace Owens and former Tucson police officer Brandon Tatum. Great job, what a great job. ... Thank you very much for being here.” As per the CBS News report, he also said, "Democrats have run nearly every inner city in American... and their policies have delivered nothing but calamity, poverty and trouble. Sleepy Joe Biden has betrayed Black and Latino Americans. If you think he can run this country, you're wrong."

According to an ABC News report, the travel and lodging of some attendees were paid for by Owens' group BLEXIT, according to emails obtained by the news organization. In an email from Owens, obtained by ABC News, attendees were told "EVERYONE MUST BRING A MASK TO BE ALLOWED ENTRY ONTO THE WHITE HOUSE GROUNDS" and that "absolutely no exceptions" will be made. A source with the knowledge of the group’s planning told ABC News, “All attendees must bring a mask with them and will be instructed to wear it on the White House Complex. All attendees must submit to a Covid-19 screening tomorrow morning. This will consist of a temperature check and a brief questionnaire. The health and safety of all attendees is our priority and following CDC guidelines is strongly encouraged.”

On Twitter, journalist Jonathan Capehart shared the ABC News report and said, “From the “You don’t say!” File Owens' BLEXIT group pays for some attendees' travel to Trump's White House event - ABC News.” Owens quote-tweeted it and replied, “Um... yes. We had a small group of attendees who asked for financial help to make the event so we secured travel stipends for them. Mocking people who are struggling financially is the weirdest, most elitist, Democrat flex— possibly ever.”

Soon, others also started discussing the event. One alleged, “We’re still laughing that you paid 400 people to attend Trump’s White House rally which violates the Hatch Act.” Another said, “Why is it that tough to get it through people’s heads that no one was paid to be there news outlets ran that story because Owens wouldn’t entertain it altogether and The Hatch Act doesn’t apply to the President!” Another claimed, “Congratulations on your 400 paid attendees and your continued violation of The Hatch Act.” A user tweeted, “People were paid to be there. This wasn’t a protest it was a campaign rally. This violates the hatch act. Whichever intern runs this twitter account is also guilty. Do the right thing and turn yourself in.” Another said, "It couldn’t be a protest because they were paid to be there. It does violate the hatch act."

These remarks were made by the Internet and individual organizations, MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) cannot confirm them independently and nor does it support these claims being made on the Internet.