Thousands in Indiana |Rally for Donald Trump

INDIANAPOLIS (CN) — In a speech peppered with insults about "Lyin' Ted" and "Crooked Hillary," Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump also made a point Wednesday to touch on an issue personal to Indiana voters.

"If I were in office right now, Carrier would not be leaving Indiana, that I can tell you," said Trump, touching on the February announcement that Carrier Corp. would be closing its Indianapolis factory and eliminating thousands of jobs in the state.

Addressing a reported crowd of 3,000 at the state fairgrounds, Trump's Wednesday afternoon appearance in Indiana came on the heels of a huge win in New York's primary.

"You're going to pay a damn tax when you leave this country," Trump said with regard to Carrier.

Indiana hosts its May 3 primary election in less than two weeks, and the Republican front-runner gave supporters what they wanted to hear, hitting on popular topics as jobs, trade with China and his plan to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

"Believe me, that wall's getting built," Trump said to thunderous applause.

Though the Tuesday win in New York helped Trump inch closer to the target of 1,237 delegates required to win the Republican presidential nomination, Indiana's 57 delegates remain one of the larger prizes still remaining in the race if he wants to avoid predicted hassles at the Republican convention in July.

While Trump would still presumably be in the lead with both the number of votes and total delegates, many of the delegates would become unbound, no longer tied to a specific candidate, if the first round of GOP voting fails to agree on a candidate.

Such a scenario most likely favors Sen. Ted Cruz, a favorite of the party establishment who has received over double the endorsements of Trump.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, a fellow Republican who will be up for re-election in November has yet to publically endorse a candidate, but met with Trump earlier Wednesday and expressed gratitude for the visit.

"Gov. Pence was pleased to welcome Mr. Trump back to Indiana and hear firsthand his plans for the country," the governor's office said in a statement.

With many wearing red "Make America Great Again" hats, Trump supporters seemed to be in high spirits awaiting the reality-television star's arrival. Most waited standing for hours, as the few sections of metal bleachers filled up quickly.

Elizabeth Dostin, of Plainfield, explained why the real estate mogul has her vote. "Trump has what it takes to repair the damage done over the last eight years," she said.

Another Trump supporter, Kim Denney from Columbus, felt that Trump would "let us protect ourselves."

Denney also said she believed that politically Cruz was "too far right [wing]" and that he wouldn't win in a general election. When she noted her appreciation of Trump keeps his religion more personal, a woman traveling with Denny chimed in, "I loved Bill, but not Hillary!"

In a campaign marred by violence between Trump supporters and protesters, and allegations of racism, the event was mostly subdued, with only a handful of attendees forcibly removed.

Supporters drew attention to most ejections from the Blue Ribbon Pavilion by the waving their Trump signs and chanting "Trump, Trump, Trump."

This echoed instruction over the public-announcement system that said not to harm protesters, and to simply wave signs and chant "Trump" until security arrived.

One protester engaged in a heated exchange with a security guard before being escorted out directly in front of the press area.

Another protester who wore a "Black Lives Matter" shirt said she was not that there to endorse any specific candidate but was "surprised by the people of color that supported Trump."

While mostly calm indoors, over a hundred protestors waited outside with signs and costumes, and engaged nearby Trump supporters after the rally had finished. A line of police officers stood nearby and sometimes in between the two sides as they verbally sparred.

Only a few Trump supporters stayed after the rally to confront the anti-Trump crowd, who brandished signs, many of which called the Republican candidate racist. Both sides shouted insults and waved signs, and even a few middle fingers were raised.

Despite the shouting, a few instances of real discussion took place among the protesters, with one group discussing the importance of immigrants to the country, and how the country is made up of many different races. Another group of young people, which consisted of some Bernie Sanders supporters, participated in a "love hug" during the shouting.

Some heated exchanges took place, but eventually the police dispersed both sides, with only one man being taken away in handcuffs for unknown reasons.

With the candidate not diving too deeply into the details of his platform, Trump did not leave the Hoosier state without taking jabs at his rivals.

Trump repeatedly attacked "Lyin' Ted," and took shots at Cruz's ties to banking donors, saying that the Texan was Goldman Sachs' "favorite senator."

Though he did not touch on the Sanders campaign, Trump did make mention of the Vermont senator's rival, mocking "Crooked Hillary" many times throughout his speech.

One rallying point of Trump's speech was when he directed hate toward the press.

"The media, they are the worst," Trump said to some of the loudest applause of the afternoon. "They are very dishonest people. They are terrible. These are not stupid people, but they're very dishonest people."

As Trump neared the end of his speech, he took aim at President Barack Obama's health care reform. He promised those in attendance that if elected he would "terminate Obamacare," and then ended his speech with "we're going to win, win, win."

Ahead of Indiana's primary, Trump must first face the April 26 primaries in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Email *

Submit