'It's decorated for Halloween': New Yorkers rally after Trump calls city 'ghost town'

Donald Trump is no stranger to making throwaway comments that don’t stand up to scrutiny, but last night he made one that New Yorkers couldn’t abide.

In the last of the presidential debates, Trump set his sights toward cities that he deemed overzealous in their response to the pandemic. Turning to New York, where the US president is from, Trump said:

“Take a look at New York and what’s happened to my wonderful city. For so many years, I loved it, it was vibrant. It’s dying, everyone’s leaving New York.”

At one point earlier this year, New York had the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world. Its death toll currently sits around 24,000. The city enacted a shutdown order that lasted for months as a result, one of the strictest across the US.

But New Yorkers rallied against the idea that their city has died. People mocked Trump’s comment, pondering out loud why it was still so difficult to park, if the city is so dead.

Some of New York city’s non-essential businesses were closed for a number of months during the pandemic (and some still are closed partially – such as gyms and restaurants), but measures were brought in to keep businesses alive – such as extending outside dining areas, relaxed liquor laws and pedestrianized streets.

Walking through Manhattan’s Upper West Side, New York City councillor Mark Levine shared a video of a buzzy atmosphere, with people dining out at restaurants, with some separated from one another in plastic domes for their safety.

New York City’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, responded to the comments on MSNBC, saying “The only ghost town is going to be Mar-a-lago after this election when Donald Trump is forced into retirement there.”

Others took a lighter approach. The Daily Show’s Samantha Bee responded to Trump’s comments, asking whether “he thinks New York is a ghost town because every time he’s here all he hears is ‘Boooo’.”

Some questioned whether the Halloween season had just left Trump feeling a little confused. “Maybe Trump thinks NYC is a ghost town because it’s decorated for Halloween?” ask former Rupaul Drag Race contestant Aquaria.

But others seemed downright offended that a city that acted swiftly whilst mourning the deaths of tens of thousands of people should be mocked for its tight Covid-19 restrictions. “New York is not a ghost town. New York flattened the curve,” said an NYC doctor.