Former President Donald Trump is holding a campaign rally for his supporters in Waco, Texas on Saturday night. The event was scheduled to start at 11 p.m. Norwegian time, but Trump’s campaign meetings are rarely accurate. At 11:30 p.m., fans were able to cheer as Trump’s private plane, “Trump Force One,” landed near the event.

As the rally in Waco marks the start of Trump’s campaign run ahead of the 2024 presidential election, the 76-year-old has spent little time in politics in the past week. Last Saturday, Trump announced he would soon be arrested by the Manhattan attorney general, who is investigating the Republican for possible violations of election law. Trump has warned of possible “death and destruction” if charged, and the possible investigation will likely be on the agenda at tonight’s campaign meeting.

Thousands of Trump’s staunchest supporters flocked to Waco, Texas ahead of tonight’s speech. That he chose to start the electoral campaign here is not fortuitous. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Waco Massacre, where FBI agents surrounded the property of cult leader Koresh on suspicion that he was stockpiling large amounts of illegal weapons.

After 51 days, federal agents attempted to force Koresh and the cult members out using tear gas. A massive fire broke out and 76 people died, including 25 children.

Since the tragedy, Waco has become a symbol of the abuse of power by the authorities, and the incident has given rise to a number of conspiracy theories and distrust of federal authorities.

To this day, Waco has strong symbolic value for the far right in American politics, and several pundits believe Trump’s election is a courtship to the most extreme part of the electoral base.

– You could not choose any other place in the United States that cultivates this hatred of the authorities to the same degree as Waco. There is Christian nationalist skepticism towards the authorities. I find it hard to believe that Trump is not aware that Waco represents this, says Heidi Beirich, founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism to USA today.