TEXAS — Avid supporters of President Trump driving in pickup trucks surrounded a Joe Biden campaign bus on a Texas highway Friday, prompting alarmed staffers to call 911 and cancel at least two stops scheduled later that day, according to reports.
People in several trucks formed a so-called “Trump Train,” waving flags and honking horns while surrounding the bus as it traveled on Interstate 35, bound from San Antonio to Austin, videos show.
Biden campaign officials said afterward that they feared the Trump devotees might run their bus off the road. However, nothing of the sort ever occurred.
Nevertheless, the FBI is investigating the incident, according to the Texas Tribune.
It was unclear if any laws were broken. The FBI office in San Antonio said in an email to Fox News that the agency will release a statement on Sunday.
“I LOVE Texas,” the president tweeted Saturday, sharing a video showing trucks with Trump flags following the Biden bus.
I LOVE TEXAS! pic.twitter.com/EP7P3AvE8L
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2020
A separate video posted to social media appeared to show at least one minor traffic collision when two vehicles made contact on the highway near San Marcos but did not stop. The Biden campaign later canceled at least two events in San Marcos and Austin.
Neither Joe Biden nor his running mate, Kamala Harris, were aboard the bus, which was not part of Harris’ separate visit to Texas that day, Fox reported.
However, aboard the bus was Texas congressional candidate and former state Sen. Wendy Davis, according to the Tribune.
Naomi Narvaiz of the San Marcos Area Republican Texans Group, tweeted Sunday that the Biden campaign canceled their events “because they saw minimal support for their democrat candidates!”
“It was an embarrassment to them to see so much more support for @POTUS @realDonaldTrump! They then resort to be victims! #Trump2020,” she wrote.
The real reason the Biden/Harris campaign ‘cancelled’ their events is because they saw minimal support for their democrat candidates! It was an embarrassment to them to see so much more support for @POTUS @realDonaldTrump! They then resort to be victims! #Trump2020
— Naomi Narvaiz (@nytxnn) November 1, 2020
The Republican Party of Texas issued a statement targeting the reporter who covered the story for the Texas Tribune, saying she was trying to portray conservatives as “violent radicals.”
The Biden campaign tour stopped in Laredo earlier Friday, prompting one social media user to tweet a message calling on people to “escort” the Biden bus through San Antonio. The tweet included the hashtags #TrumpTrainTexas and #FollowTheBus.
“Trolling is FUN,” the tweet said, adding, “We are on the bridges & will intercept at Walters/I35!!”
‼️ Trolling is FUN ‼️#FollowTheBus @WeAre_TheElite @DanScavino
Join us in #SanAntonio to escort the Biden ? coming through San Antonio.
We are on the bridges & will intercept at Walters/I35!! #TrumpTrainTexas #WeAreTheRally #BidenBus #Trump2020 #NewBraunfelsTrumpTrain pic.twitter.com/7YquFOlbql
— TRUTHSERUM4ALL ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #GODISREAL (@truthserum4all) October 30, 2020
As the bus traveled through multiple jurisdictions, local police departments in New Braunfels, Kyle and San Marcos said they received calls about the Trump caravan but it was unclear if any criminal activity occurred.
Democrats painted the Trump supporters as aggressors trying to stop the bus, but Republicans said the drivers were merely following the bus to show support for the president.
Narvaiz tweeted a video of the caravan of Trump supporters following the bus Friday and said: “We sent the @JoeBiden @KamalaHarris bus out of Hays! Your kind aren’t welcome here! This is #TrumpCountry.”
We sent the @JoeBiden @KamalaHarris bus out of Hays! Your kind aren’t welcome here! This is #TrumpCountry #smtx #sanmarcos #MAGA #LatinosForTrump #Trump2020Landslide #LeadRight #AmericaFirst @realDonaldTrump @DonaldJTrumpJr @LaraLeaTrump @EricTrump @TrumpStudents @RidgeReaper68 pic.twitter.com/q2v2FRmNPr
— Naomi Narvaiz (@nytxnn) October 30, 2020
Katie Naranjo, who chairs the Travis County Democratic Party, tweeted that Trump supporters “followed the Biden bus throughout central Texas to intimidate Biden supporters.”
“They ran into a person’s car, yelling curse words and threats,” she said.
Today, @realDonaldTrump supporters followed the Biden bus throughout central Texas to intimidate Biden supporters. They ran into a person's car, yelling curse words and threats. Don't let bullies win, vote. pic.twitter.com/CIyEWwbvqU
— Katie Naranjo (@KatieNaranjo) October 30, 2020
Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler, a Republican running for re-election, told the Tribune that the Biden campaign did not notify his office that the bus would be passing through the area Friday.
The group “Women For Trump” recently toured Texas.
It’s a good thing they didn’t encounter the Biden bus, otherwise they (Biden’s campaign) may have been even more “intimidated.”
