Donald Trump awkwardly wandered around 17 minutes at a rally in Detroit on Friday after a technical hiccup left him unable to address the crowd.
The former president was in Michigan, one of the US’s biggest swing states, as he campaigns ahead of the Presidential election on November 5.
But while speaking at the podium, the Republican firebrand left the audience on a cliffhanger as he built up to revealing what he thinks is “the most beautiful word”.
“To me, the most beautiful word in the dictionary, it’s not ‘love,’ it’s not ‘respect,’ he teased, before being silenced by the audio failure, which continued for 17 minutes.
During the odd interlude, Trump walked slowly around apparently unsure of what to do, and growing visibly irate as the wait went on.
The sound was eventually restored and the 78-year-old drew cheers as he quipped that he wouldn’t be paying the sound crew because of the mishap.
“I won’t pay the bill to this stupid company,” he told attendees, adding: “If it goes out again, I’ll sue the ass off that company.”
Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign has been approached for comment.
The technical blunder on Friday comes after Trump appeared at a discussion moderated by South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem in another major swing state, Pennsylvania, but cut questions short and requested music be played instead.
The event had been interrupted by two medical emergencies and Trump eventually suggested they enjoy some musical selections rather than hearing him answer more questions.
The Republican called for “YMCA” by the Village People to be played, which often rings out when Trump is finished speaking and exiting the stage, but this time he didn’t.
Trump appeared confused that people weren’t clearing out of the venue as the music continued, saying: “Nobody’s leaving,” adding, “What’s going on?”, according to reports.
A selection of songs familiar to his rally-goers continued to play for around 40 minutes as he remained before the audience.
The odd conclusion prompted mockery from Democrats, with his White House rival Kamala Harris sharing a clip on X and writing simply: “Hope he’s okay.”
The real estate mogul finally left the stage as “Memory” from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “Cats” played.
Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung wrote on X that “something very special is happening in Pennsylvania” as the scene unfolded, adding he “is unlike any politician in history, and it’s great,” AP reports.
