Slogans including “Vance on Trump: ‘What an idiot,’” beamed across the Trump Tower in New York on Monday in a move by Democrats that echoed the success of a similar stunt on Chicago’s Trump International Hotel in August.
As with Chicago, the Democratic National Committee confirmed it was responsible for the projections in Manhattan Monday night to the Daily Beast; aimed at pulling attention to the first–and only–vice presidential debate between Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Vance arrived at Trump Tower in preparation for the Tuesday night debate at the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan just hours before the projections began, according to CBS News.
The Democratic National Committee projects messages on Trump Tower on the eve of the vice presidential debate on September 30, 2024 in New York City.
Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for DNC
Projections on Trump Tower in New York City include Vance’s 2016 comments calling Trump an “idiot.” Vance was initially not a supporter of the former president but began to change tune around 2022.
Another projection on the building Monday night included a reference to the former president refusing to debate opponent Kamala Harris for a second time: “Trump is a chicken!” Others included, “Project 2025 HQ” and “Go Coach Walz!”
“Donald Trump and JD Vance will do anything to gain unchecked power – no matter the cost,” DNC Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman said in a statement. “Vance made it crystal clear that he believes Trump is unfit to be president. But instead of standing up to him, JD Vance sold out and is now trying to sell the American people on Trump’s dangerous Project 2025 agenda to grant Trump unchecked power to roll back Americans’ rights.
“As Vance takes the debate stage to attempt to make up for Trump’s own lackluster debate performance, these projections on Trump Tower NYC are a reminder that Trump and Vance are out for themselves while Trump remains afraid to go back on that debate stage and be held accountable by Vice President Harris for his failed record and his dangerous agenda. America will reject their self-serving, extreme Project 2025 plans this November.”
Campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told Fox News of the projections: “President Trump is living rent-free in Kamala Harris and the Democrats’ addled pea brains infected by a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
The move comes weeks after the DNC projected similar slogans onto Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago on the eve of the Democratic National Convention.
At the time, “Trump-Vance: Out For Themselves” was projected onto the building, as well as “Trump-Vance: ‘Weird as Hell,’” “Harris-Walz: Fighting for You,” and “Project 2025 HQ.”
“Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz have proven records of delivering for working families, and now, they’re running to lead our country into a brighter future,” Rahman said at the time.
