Why Donald Trump is skipping Seattle for a Lynden rally

Donald Trump is slated for two Washington rallies this weekend, but neither are near the state’s largest population — Seattle. One state senator alleges that Trump supporters tried to hold a rally in Seattle, but King County officials halted their efforts. Others are arguing a different story.

Republican State Senator Doug Ericksen spoke with KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson on Friday, the eve of Trump’s rallies in Spokane and Lynden, which is in Ericksen’s district near the US-Canada border.

Related: Washington governor, lawmakers, advocates hold anti-Trump conference on eve of visit

Ericksen said he and other Trump supporters wanted to host the presumptive Republican presidential nominee in Seattle, closer to the masses. But they had to move it to Lynden at the last minute to host 4,500 people.

“The long and short of it is that we had it lined up for Boeing Field but King County refused to give us permits to do the event. That happened on Wednesday afternoon and we had to scramble for a different venue and we came up with this one,”  Ericksen said.

“We weren’t even going to leave the Boeing Field area. Trump One was going to touch down. We were going to have the rally there at the hanger. We had already signed the agreements for the hanger. We thought we were all good to go,” Ericksen said, but he alleges that King County officials decided not to approve the permits.

Ericksen later told Dori that his statements about the Trump’s failed Seattle visit were his opinion.

KIRO Radio Reporter Josh Kerns had been looking into the failed Trump visit to Seattle, and he heard another angle.

According to officials with the King Country Department of Transportation, tenants at Boeing Field can have any aviation-related events at the airport. But unrelated events, such as political rallies, must go through a process. In this case, a tenant inquired about having the Trump event and they were instructed that a formal plan needed to be submitted with accommodations for security, media, and for traffic. Officials said that they never denied any permits for the Trump event, rather, the tenant opted out.

“I’ve spoken with both the King County Sheriff’s Office and the Seattle Police Department that were all on standby, ready to staff an event there. And ultimately it was determined not to be held there, and not that anybody declined a Trump event,” Kerns said.

Ericksen said that is not how he views the situation.

“I have a slightly different opinion on that and how it actually played out. But I don’t want to get into the conversation on that, I want to focus on tomorrow’s event,” he said. “I can’t go into it. ”

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