Supporters of President Donald Trump hovered in a Trump-themed helicopter over the site of a campaign rally for Senator Bernie Sanders in Phoenix, Arizona on Thursday.
The helicopter with "Trump 2020" painted on its side in patriotic colors was spotted before gates were opened to let the crowd in at 4:30 p.m. local time, according to KPNX. Sanders spoke at the event more than two hours later.
Video footage of the helicopter includes a closeup that shows two men seated in the aircraft, one of them wearing an outfit resembling an American flag and what looks like a red Trump hat. The news outlet reported that some of the crowd waiting below shouted at and "flipped off" the helicopter.
A check of the helicopter's "N105" registration number reveals that the aircraft is also known as "The Trump Chopper," a vehicle operated by two Trump supporters who fly it around the country with the goal of aiding in Trump's campaign pledge to "keep America great."
There does not appear to be a connection between the helicopter and the official Trump campaign. Newsweek reached out the campaign for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
Trump's name was uttered disparagingly many times by Sanders during the rally. Early on in the speech, the senator called the president a "fraud" for promising to provide healthcare to "everybody" during his 2016 campaign.
"When he ran for president in 2016, he promised that he was going to provide healthcare for everybody. He lied," said Sanders. "Instead of trying to provide healthcare to everybody he attempted to throw 32 million Americans off of the healthcare they have and do away with the protections for pre-existing conditions."
Sanders had been considered the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination until former Vice President Joe Biden's strong comeback in South Carolina and on Super Tuesday caused the race to shift. Sen. Elizabeth Warren dropped out of the race Thursday, leaving Sanders and Biden as the only two major Democratic candidates left.
"There are now two candidates. One of them is an old friend of mine, Joe Biden," Sanders said, meeting with some resistance from the crowd.
"Joe Biden is a decent guy and I know that if I win the nomination, he'll be there for me. And if he wins, I'll be there for him," added Sanders. "Our differences are minimal compared to the differences we have with Trump."
Sanders went on to compare himself to Biden favorably, but he saved his biggest jabs for Trump, contrasting his own "not me, us" campaign slogan with what he believes are the values of the president towards the end of his speech.
"We understand that the function of human life is not simply to make billions of dollars and step on everybody, and to lie, and to cheat and to steal," said Sanders. "That's Trump's vision of what life is about. We understand that we are better and stronger human beings when we care about each other."
