ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A man with plenty of experience in the role of U.S. president was in downtown Allentown on Tuesday morning to support Democratic candidates.
Actor Martin Sheen, who played two-term Democratic President Jed Bartlet on NBC-TV's "The West Wing" 1999-2006, stumped for Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Sen. Bob Casey at a Democratic Party office.
It was about a quarter-mile from PPL Center, where former President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a rally Tuesday night.
“I only want to say that his rally in New York was a very great celebration of ignorance, and it went to prove over and over again that arrogance is ignorance matured."Actor Martin Sheen
Sheen, whose given name is Ramón Estévez, briefly castigated Trump and other Republicans for Sunday night’s rally at Madison Square Garden, an event that’s drawn comparison to a 1939 Nazi rally at that venue after repeated racist remarks.
“I only want to say that his rally in New York was a very great celebration of ignorance, and it went to prove over and over again that arrogance is ignorance matured,” Sheen said, noting his parents were immigrants from Ireland and Spain.
"The West Wing" won more than two dozen Emmy Awards, and won Sheen a Golden Globe Award in 2000 for Best Actor in a TV Drama.
“While acting is what I do for a living, activism is what I do to stay alive,” he said.
“I’m here in Pennsylvania to support Kamala Harris and Bob Casey because, clearly, what happens here will determine the fate of the U.S. Senate and the White House."
Trump 'unhinged, unstable, unfit': Tuerk
Sheen was joined Tuesday morning by Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk, City Council President Cynthia Mota and state Reps. Josh Siegel and Mike Schlossberg.
Trump “once again displayed how unhinged, unstable and unfit he is to be president of the United States,” Tuerk said.
“The comments made at his rally only further underscore that he never had any intention to be a president for all Americans. He’s only ever cared about himself."Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
Trump’s closing arguments at the rally “focused entirely on his own grievances, demeaned our country and our military and doubled down on raging against Americans who disagree with him as the enemy within,” Tuerk said.
He “then stood silent as one of his top campaign surrogates called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage.”
Speakers at that rally also “spewed racism, misogyny and hate that we felt directly here in Allentown,” Tuerk said.
“The comments made at his rally only further underscore that he never had any intention to be a president for all Americans,' he said. "He’s only ever cared about himself.”
Allentown is “the center attention — we’ve been the center of attention for months now,” Tuerk said.
“This is a chance for Allentown to use its voice. This is the moment for our city.”Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
Trump soon will be in Allentown “where we have this incredibly strong connection to Puerto Rico,” Tuerk said.
He urged residents and voters to use the national spotlight to “make sure that Allentown's issues are well understood.”
“This is a chance for Allentown to use its voice,” Tuerk said. “This is the moment for our city.”
