Trump-O'Reilly Tour Kicks Off With Empty Seats in Florida

It was reported earlier this week that the "The History Tour"—a multi-city tour featuring former US President Donald Trump and disgraced Fox News host Bill O'Reilly—had failed to sell out of tickets, which ranged from around $100 for a basic seat, to $7,500 for so-called "premium" options.

Despite promises of "big crowds" and sold-out venues, a "lucrative" tour headlined by Trump and O'Reilly failed to fill the FLA Live Arena during its Saturday night kick-off event in Sunrise, Florida.

"Many seats remained empty in the cavernous arena," reported the Sun-Sentinel, detailing that the upper level of the arena was closed off and those with tickets were subsequently "upgraded" to the lower bowl of the venue, which seats an estimated 20,000.

The crowd could be overheard belting out the anti-Biden, "Let's Go Brandon" chant as the event started on Saturday. Per the Sun-Sentinel, members of the Proud Boys, a far-right, neo-fascist organization, were in attendance.

This should give you a better idea…
Empty Empty Empty pic.twitter.com/ySkgdfaBeO

— jeffrey bielak (@BielakJeffrey) December 12, 2021

During his time on stage, Trump repeated unfounded conspiracy theories about the results of the 2020 US presidential election and slammed US President Joe Biden's administration for the current state of the nation.

Trump also touted to his supporters that, unlike the current US president, he was able to get along with so-called "tyrants" such as Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"The ones I did the best with were the tyrants," he said. "For whatever reason, I got along great with Putin, I got along great with President Xi of China. I got along with Kim Jong Un of North Korea ... and isn't that good? Isn't that better than having a nuclear war?"

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Bill O’Reilly and President Trump are live at the FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, FL and O’Reilly asked him about Jan 6th. Trump responded with “Nov 3rd was the insurrection, Jan 6th was a protest.”

Stephen Diener reporting live. pic.twitter.com/Bq6ccEM8H7

— 850 WFTL (@850WFTL) December 11, 2021

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Although some thousands were in attendance, lackluster ticket sales is a sore spot for both Trump and O'Reilly.

In July it was reported that the former Fox News host had threatened to sue Politico's Daniel Lippman after the latter published an article detailing low sales for the event, although tickets had been available for a month.

"Nobody has sold tickets this fast at this price, and VIPs are sold out at three of the four venues," O'Reilly declared in an interview with Lippman.

"You put one word in there that’s not true, I’ll sue your ass off, and you can quote me on that," added the former Fox News Host.

A Trump spokesperson, Liz Harrington, also pushed back on the reporting, arguing at the time that the tour had already grossed over $5 million in ticket sales.

"Come December, the sold out shows will be a memorable night for all," she asserted.

With one appearance complete, the Trump-O'Reilly tour is slated to continue in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday and in Houston and Dallas, Texas, next weekend.

"We had a great time in Sunrise, FL yesterday. Very exciting, informative, and fun. We will be back in the area for a major rally in the not too distant future. See you then!" Trump said in a quoted statement.

Without providing a date, Trump also noted that he would soon hold a "major rally" for Florida-based supporters.