Speaking to the crowd, Lawler joked that while Democrats call him “MAGA Mike,” others on the right call him a “traitorous RINO” for not always voting in line with Trump.

Lawler touted his “strong working relationship” with Trump. He touted Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” including the tax break for tips and overtime pay, and expanding the state and local tax (SALT) deduction up to $40,000, a major issue in New York. He defended the bill’s Medicaid spending cuts and work requirements, and spent a portion of his speech slamming New York Democrats.

“Mike Lawler is fantastic. He’s fantastic,” Trump told the crowd. “He’s a terrific guy. You’re lucky to have him.”

Trump positively said Lawler was “a pain in the ass” in pursuit of the SALT deduction expansion. He did not mention that the previously unlimited deduction was capped at $10,000 in 2017 because of his own Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. He later brought Lawler on stage with him, and the congressman praised Trump for helping the GOP gain ground in Rockland County.

The event took place in red-leaning Rockland County, which is about an hour outside New York City and the heart of Lawler’s base. He won it by 10 points in 2022, and expanded that margin to 18 points in 2024. The district also contains a big slice of blue-leaning Westchester County across the river, which is Lawler’s Achilles heel and voted against him by double digits.

Lawler is one of three Republicans who won re-election in 2024 in a district carried by Democrat Kamala Harris — along with Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., who is retiring, and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., whom Trump publicly criticized this week as he flexes his enduring power within the Republican coalition.

Lawler has supported much of Trump’s agenda, including the “big, beautiful bill” and his war with Iran. But he has picked moments to buck the president, like when he teamed up with Democrats to try and revive expired Obamacare funds that Trump opposed. That bill passed the House in January, but Senate Republicans killed it.

At the Trump-Lawler event, some voters said they accept that their congressman won’t vote with the president all the time.

“Mike is really for his people. He’s pretty liberal in some ways, which is good. You know, you gotta be bipartisan, but I just want to make sure he stays MAGA,” said John Resciniti, a local voter who attended the rally. “That’s the most important thing.”

And Trump?

“I love the man,” Resciniti said. “I’m so happy that he’s our president. He’s doing everything right as far as I’m concerned.”

Lawler was first elected in 2022, when he upset sitting Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Sean Patrick Maloney by over-performing in this redrawn district. He won a second term in 2024.

But that was then, when he was capitalizing on a backlash to Biden. Now, Trump is in office, and Democrats hope his sinking approval will drag down Republicans.

“It’s going to be really challenging for him,” said Robin Pellicci, a Lawler supporter who attended the rally. “I know that there’s a big divide, especially in Rockland, but I think he can do it. You know, he’s got to just keep on keeping on.”

Democrats are working overtime to tie Lawler to Trump.

Cait Conley, a Democrat vying for the nomination, said in an interview, “Trump is here campaigning for MAGA Mike Lawler instead of doing the work to lower costs for families across the Hudson Valley. Since Trump has taken office it’s only gotten harder for families to make ends meet. But he clearly does not care and neither does Mike Lawler as he rips health care away from our neighbors and continues the illegal war in Iran jacking up gas prices.”

Lawler, for his part, said all of his opponents “hate President Trump and will refuse to work with him on anything, if elected.”

He added that he’s “not afraid” to challenge his “own party’s leaders when I believe they are wrong.”

DCCC spokesperson Riya Vashi said ahead of Trump’s visit, “From skyrocketing gas and groceries to unaffordable housing and health care, Lawler bearhugging the unpopular architect of this economic disaster in his own district is just the latest reminder for Hudson Valley voters that their so-called ‘representative’ will always put Donald Trump first, and they sure as hell won’t forget it come November.”

The National Republican Congressional Committee praised Lawler as it seeks to help him defend the contested district.

“While radical Democrats have spent years making New York one of the most expensive and unaffordable states in the nation, President Trump and Mike Lawler have worked tirelessly to right the ship. Thanks to their efforts, Hudson Valley families saw the SALT deduction quadruple, their paycheck grow, and taxes go down,” NRCC spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole said.

Edward X. Young, said he drove 100 miles from New Jersey to attend Friday’s rally, calling it his 114th Trump rally.

“And I got here about two in the morning because I wanted to be up front, up close. I got a pretty good spot,” said Young, who was decked out in Trump merchandise, even a “Barron 2052 pin.”

Like other voters at this rally, Young said he supports Trump’s war in Iran, despite the negative economic impact at home.

“This is an atrocity that had to be brought to an end,” he said. “I don’t care if I’m paying more for gas.”