Trump Fans Wear Their Grievances at Conservative Rallies

Sign up here to get On Politics successful your inbox connected Tuesdays and Thursdays.

RICHMOND, Va. — In the main auditorium for a blimpish rally titled “Take Back Virginia” this week successful the state’s capital, speakers promoted predetermination conspiracy theories, warned of a coming civilian warfare with wide states, and proclaimed President Biden should beryllium arrested for treason.

But successful the event’s backmost room, that grim tenor gave mode to the benignant of darkly festive code often recovered astatine 1 of erstwhile President Donald J. Trump’s signature rallies — food, drinks and laughter. The sounds of a shot tailgate converging with governmental grievances.

As a authorities newsman for The New York Times, I person been to astir 2 twelve events of this kind, including Mr. Trump’s stadium rallies, smaller events similar this, oregon makeshift festivals similar “Trumpstock” for Mr. Trump’s ace fans successful Northern Arizona. Each time, I’m reminded of however these occasions are constructed to hardly consciousness similar a governmental event.

Mr. Trump has his signature rally playlist — which his die-hard supporters person travel to memorize — afloat of wide-ranging euphony including opera, stone and adjacent “Memories,” from the philharmonic “Cats.”

The lawsuit successful Virginia, wherever Mr. Trump delivered an code by phone, served meatballs and food plates and had a currency bar, wherever customers could ticker speakers from the different room. At 1 point, 2 patrons swapped petitions astir predetermination integrity, updating each different connected ongoing efforts to overturn the 2020 predetermination portion ordering a solid of wine.

However, the astir noticeable reflection of however Mr. Trump’s astir ardent fans person taken connected his property and grievances is successful the clothing. Among immoderate attendees, it is not capable to spell to an lawsuit successful the sanction of Mr. Trump; their attendance besides requires wearing thing that mimics immoderate of his governmental calling cards — mocking his governmental opponents, utilizing vulgar connection and openly embracing governmental incorrectness. At immoderate events, I’ve seen radical with peculiarly crass T-shirts clasp their ain photograph lines, arsenic others queue for selfie aft selfie.

In Virginia, I talked to 3 men — each dressed reasonably typically for an lawsuit similar this — astir what they decided to wear, and however their covering reflected their governmental beliefs.

These interviews person been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

James Thornton, 47, of Virginia

“I’m unfastened to some sides. But erstwhile I spell implicit to the different side, they don’t similar me. I privation to perceive their broadside and they tin perceive my side. That’s the mode nine should be. Not shutting down things due to the fact that you can’t answer.”

“Education for maine is the biggest thing. The captious contention mentation and the L.G.B.T. Which I don’t mind. I don’t attraction if you’re gay. It’s erstwhile you propulsion your views onto my views. Where bash your rights commencement and excavation end?”

“It’s not that I hatred Democrats. It’s their docket and what they push. I’m a hard-working person. And I spot my taxation dollars not benefiting maine astatine all. It benefits a benignant that don’t privation to springiness 100 percent and springiness that effort. I cognize everyone isn’t similar that. Some radical request help, nary doubt. But erstwhile I spot a 27-year-old laughing, saying, ‘I get assistance,’ I go, ‘What! I’m paying for that.’ You cognize I utilized to person a sticker that said, ‘Keep moving — the millions connected payment beryllium connected it.’”

Val Yurachek, 52, of Virginia

“I’m disquieted astir our freedoms. The American radical privation what this state is based on, which is our freedoms. And each these mandates and forced vaccinations, that’s not America and that’s not state and that’s not our God-given rights. Rights travel from God. And that’s what the Constitution is based on.”

“We don’t privation to spell the way of a socialist oregon communist country. My household came from a spot that had 1 of those types of regimes, and that’s not thing that we privation here.”

“I was successful the Marine Corps. And my begetter was successful the Marine Corps, too. And arsenic Americans we emotion our country, and the emblem and the eagle correspond that. I don’t privation to enactment a broad implicit everyone and accidental lone 1 enactment supports that. But if you’re going to enactment America, and you’re going to enactment patriotism, the blimpish broadside — the Constitution broadside — that’s the radical to bash it. The near has gone excessively acold to communism and socialism.”

Robert Levy, 62, of New Jersey

“We started the T-shirt institution past summer. First it was a mates of shirts, and past we enactment up a motion warring the Covid restrictions — and it was a large hit.”

“It’s gotten easier to merchantability anti-Biden stuff. Because of the horrendous worldly he’s doing, radical connected some sides of the aisle are sick of what he’s doing. If you’re not brain-dead, you don’t enactment these benignant of policies.”

“We person to spell to events similar these, due to the fact that if we tried to merchantability connected Facebook, we’d get taken down. Because they don’t similar the message. We person to creation to the music. We person to find our radical who person our governmental beliefs.”

“Our biggest seller is simply a garment that says ‘Stolen Property’ with a representation of the White House.”

On Politics is besides disposable arsenic a newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox.

Is determination thing you deliberation we’re missing? Anything you privation to spot much of? We’d emotion to perceive from you. Email america astatine onpolitics@nytimes.com.