Trump Endorses Trucker Campaign to Stop Deliveries to NYC in Protest of Fraud Ruling
A pro-Trump trucker and right-wing influencer who goes by the handle Chicago Ray posted a video to X, formerly Twitter, on Friday night claiming that he has spoken to “at least” 10 truckers who will “start refusing loads” headed for New York City. Ray wants truckers to stop deliveries to the city in the wake of a New York court ruling ordering the former president to pay $355 million in damages after he and the Trump Organization were found liable for committing financial fraud. And Trump supports their efforts.
“Such an honor to have so many Great Patriots on the side of FREEDOM!” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, celebrating the trucker campaign on Saturday night. “Joe Biden’s Unfair and Dangerous Weaponization of Law Enforcement is a serious threat to Democracy. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
“Trump just posted my video and picture on his Truth Social account, pretty fucken cool,” Ray posted Sunday alongside a screenshot of Trump’s post.
In Ray’s original video, which Trump also posted, Ray says, “I’ve been on the radio talking to drivers for about the last hour… and I’ve talked to at least ten drivers… And they’re going to start refusing loads to New York City starting on Monday.”
“I don’t know how far across the country this is, or how many truckers are gonna start denying loads going to New York City,” Ray added, “but I’ll tell you what, you fuck around and find out, OK? We’re tired of you motherfucking leftists fucking with Trump.”
Ray went on to claim without evidence that 95 to 96 percent of truckers are for Trump and that the prosecution of Trump is “election interference.”
In addition to imposing a hefty fine against Trump, Judge Arthur Engoron on Thursday banned the former president “from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporation or other legal entity in New York for a period of three years.” And he ordered Trump’s sons, Don Jr. and Eric, to pay $4 million each in fines. Trump is anticipated to appeal. Weeks earlier, Trump suffered another defeat in a New York court when a jury ordered him to pay $83 million in defamation-related damages to E. Jean Carroll, whom Trump sexually assaulted in the ’90s.
Whether the truckers’ campaign will grow large enough to result in any disruption of the flow of goods into New York remains to be seen. At the moment, we only have Ray’s claims, although his video received more than six million views as of early Sunday afternoon. Ray promised to give followers an update on Monday.
In 2022, following mass protests by truckers in Canada against vaccine mandates, American truckers drove into to Washington, D.C., in a “People’s Convoy,” to voice their opposition to Covid-19 mandates — though their efforts largely fell flat.
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