Despite Claim, Trump Campaign Says It Barred Ryan Challenger From Rally

GREEN BAY, Wisc. — Donald Trump’s campaign said Friday it barred House Speaker Paul Ryan’s primary challenger Paul Nehlen from entering the candidate’s Wisconsin rally because the candidate didn’t show a ticket, refuting Nehlen’s charges that the Wisconsin Republican Party was working to keep him away.

It’s another setback for Nehlen’s long-shot bid, which briefly gained some momentum this week when Trump praised his campaign while refusing to endorse Ryan in an interview with the Washington Post.

But by Friday, the latest spat between Trump and Ryan seemed to be over — and Ryan headed toward an easy primary win — when Trump endorsed the Speaker at a Green Bay rally.

Nehlen tried to attend the rally as a spectator, but told reporters after a Saturday-afternoon rally in Kenosha, that he was barred entry by the state party in an attempt to keep him out of the public eye.

"The Wisconsin GOP is doing everything they can to keep my name out of anywhere. They don't want their own constituents to know that, that there's an option out there. They want Speaker Ryan to be the only game in town. That's how the Wisconsin machine works,” Nehlen told NBC News in an interview.

Related: Can McCain Survive Trump's White House Bid?

But a Wisconsin GOP staffer pushed back Nehlen’s comments, telling NBC News that the Wisconsin GOP staff at the rally were acting as volunteers, and only the Trump campaign had the discretion to decide who to bar from entering the rally. And Trump Campaign Communications Director Jason Miller said that it was the campaign’s decision to turn Nehlen away from the Green Bay rally.

"A Trump campaign representative was the person who turned away Mr. Nehlen, because he didn't have a ticket for the event. I’m looking into the matter further. Our events are always open to the public if you’re a ticketed attendee,” Miller said in an interview.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

In response, the Nehlen campaign produced copies of two tickets to the Green Bay rally they say they tried to use to get in to the event. Asked about the tickets, the Trump campaign reiterated that no ticket was presented at the door, without clearing up the discrepancy between the two.

Related: The Problem Isn't Trump's Message, It's the Messenger

• Add to Google

Trump Endorses Speaker Ryan, Sen. John McCain at Wisconsin Rally

02:05

It’s another odd twist to a race that’s gained outsized media coverage in the wake of Trump’s brief, and ultimately inconsequential, foray into the primary. Nehlen’s framed himself as the anti-establishment, populist alternative to Ryan, in the same vein as Trump, but with Trump endorsing Ryan Friday that argument lost much of its resonance heading into the final days before the primary.

Nehlen has insisted the endorsement was meaningless and that it doesn’t reflect agreement with Ryan’s policies, only a show of leadership by Trump in attempting to unify the party. He’s instead focused his ire on the Wisconsin GOP, looking to gin up anti-establishment fervor behind his campaign by routinely charging the state party has meddled in the primary on Ryan’s behalf.

But with surveys out this past week showing Ryan leading Nehlen by a huge double-digit margin and enjoying strong popularity in his district, the Green Bay rally incident may simply be a small controversy on the way to a resounding Tuesday win for Ryan.