FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz. — Violence once again marred a Donald Trump campaign event Saturday as the Republican front-runner rallied thousands of supporters at two stops ahead of Arizona's presidential primary.
Video from an event in Tucson shows protester Bryan Sanders getting escorted out of the building by security when he is punched in the head and then kicked while on the ground.
Sanders, who had an anti-Trump poster, told NBC News he was shocked when a man in the stands grabbed his sign and ripped it out of his hands.
"I stumble back, sucker punch ... and then you saw all hell break loose," Sanders said. "He's stomping me."
Sanders said he feared for his life during the attack. "What was going through my mind was: Put your arms over your head, because this political movement has gotten to the point where you may get beat to death inside of a rally," he said.
Tony Pettway, 32, was charged with assault with an injury, a misdemeanor, and released.
Videos have circulated of another incident at the rally involving Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. The videos show him reaching for a protester's collar as a security guard grabs the protester from behind. Trump briefly addressed the issue of protesters at his events, telling the crowd "they aren't really protesters, they are agitators."
In an email to CBS, a Trump spokeswoman said, "Corey Lewandowski was speaking with a protester at today's rally in Tucson, Arizona when the individual he was speaking with was pulled from behind by the man to Lewandowski's left. The video clearly shows the protester reacting to the man who pulled him, not to Mr. Lewandowski. Mr. Trump does not condone violence at his rallies, which are private events paid for by the campaign."
Protesters block access to Phoenix-area rally
Earlier Saturday, a massive crowd waited for hours in warm sunshine to hear Trump speak in this Phoenix suburb. Access to the rally was chaotic after protesters a few miles away succeeded in closing the main route into Fountain Hills for about an hour.
"Donald Trump, shut it down. Phoenix is a people's town," and "Get this clown out of our town," the demonstrators chanted. Many protesters carried signs saying "Stand against racism."
The demonstrators dissipated before any arrests were made, said Arizona Department of Public Safety Sgt. Ann FitzGerald.
Trump, wearing a blue jacket and red "Make America Great Again" golf hat, arrived about 50 minutes after the scheduled 11 a.m. start time.
"Tuesday is so important," he said. "We have a movement going on."
"Go out on Tuesday and vote. I will never let you down," he said, referring to his supporters as a "loud, noisy majority."
Some in the crowd said Trump's blunt, sometimes offensive, talk is a big part of his appeal.
"I like that he's blunt, that there's no political correctness with him, that he says what he means," said Tracy Walter, 45, a receptionist from Fountain Hills. She said she likes Trump's political-outsider status and she wanted to be a part of this "once-in-a-lifetime event."
"If he hurts somebody's feelings, well, you can't be like that every day. And I like his views on immigration," she said.
Dede Nay, a retired teacher, traveled to Fountain Hills from Pinetop to hear Trump.
"There's a lot of bad things that are going on in the government – corruption. And I pray he makes it to the end, but if he doesn't I think the one good thing that he has done is expose the corruption that's not only rampant in the Democratic Party, but it's also in the Republican Party," she said. "We keep electing ... Republicans in, and nothing's been done. They have betrayed us."
Trump draws crowd, protests
Thousands of miles away in New York City, hundreds of protesters gathered near Trump Tower in Columbus Circle on Saturday to march toward the Fifth Avenue skyscraper the billionaire businessman owns and lives in, local media reported. MSNBC reported three demonstrators were arrested as the crowd tried to push into the streets of the bustling city.
On Friday night, demonstrators clashed with police and supporters outside a Trump rally in Salt Lake City. Last week, the Republican front-runner canceled a rally over security concerns after protesters and supporters clashed at the University of Illinois at Chicago ahead of the planned event.
Delegates at stake
Trump has maintained a comfortable lead in the Arizona polls over Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, the second-running Republican in the race, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Up for grabs on the Republican side are 58 Republican National Convention delegates. The winner will sweep all of the delegates.
However, Cruz campaigned in Arizona for the first time Friday, telling the crowd at a Phoenix rally that while Trump may be leading in Arizona's early voting, his campaign is surging. Cruz said he has gained the support of former backers of Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who exited the GOP race Tuesday. He said turnout will be key to determine the winner of the Arizona GOP primary, or presidential preference election as it is officially known.
