PENDLETON, SOUTH CAROLINA — With midterm elections right around the corner, a clip making the rounds on social media alleges that Donald Trump made an unusual noise while speaking at a South Carolina campaign rally. The footage has ignited widespread online debate, drawing both mockery and calls for verification regarding whether the audio is genuine.
Viral Video Captures Odd Noise Mid-Speech
The widely shared video stems from a rally held in South Carolina to support Republican Sen. Darline Graham.
During his remarks, Trump appears to let out a sharp, guttural sound mid-sentence. The excerpt features him saying: “And I’d say 90% of the reason I took the governor — EHHH! — I took the governor, I put her over at the United Nations, because I wanted this guy to become governor.”
Viewers have offered various interpretations of the noise, with some suggesting it was an accidental burp, while others viewed it as a deliberate gesture of disdain toward the individual he was discussing.
Accumulating millions of views, the footage has also prompted more extreme speculation online, with some commentators attributing the sound to health concerns, while others maintain it was nothing more than an innocuous bodily function.
Verification: The Sound Was Indeed Made Live
A review of the event confirms that the strange vocalization did, in fact, happen during the South Carolina rally.
The moment occurs roughly at the 19:40 mark in the official C-SPAN broadcast, as Trump discusses his decision to appoint then-Gov. Nikki Haley as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations back in 2017, explaining that he did so “because I wanted this guy to become governor.”
He continued his speech by touching on border security and past administrations, telling the crowd: “They allowed 25 million people to pour across our borders from all over the world. And if they ever won, they are going to do it all again; they’re going to do it again.”
“You remember the hell we lived in? It was like a dark period. The proud people of South Carolina, Henry, will never let that happen. Please, Henry, you’re gonna be watching; Henry is going to be watching. He’s great, he’s great,” he added, right before the moment involving the unusual noise.
Trump Commends Supporter Involved in Protester Altercation
In addition to the speech itself, the rally also drew attention when Trump openly lauded a member of the audience who appeared to strike a protester while security guards were escorting several demonstrators out of the arena.
Observing the commotion from the stage, Trump remarked, “That was great, man. Wow. Man, I loved that. I watched that,” before briefly checking in with the crowd by asking, “Is everybody okay?”
“You gotta give them credit. It takes courage to do that at a Trump rally,” he continued, concluding with the remark, “He got whacked.”