President Donald Trump was loudly booed Monday night inside New York City’s Madison Square Garden as he watched his hometown Knicks take on the San Antonio Spurs in game three of the NBA Finals.
The crowd first began to boo when the president appeared on the telecast during the singing of the national anthem.
President Trump took in the opening ceremonies from a private box with a smirk and saluted.
At times, the boos threatened to drown out the anthem as Broadway performer Avery Wilson sang.
Trump’s friends and White House colleagues joined him in the box.
He was spotted alongside his granddaughter Kai Trump, as well as Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, and Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino, plus Knicks owner James Dolan.
Even before the POTUS was in the building, New Yorkers were angry that his planned attendance at the game would mean hiked up security.
Fans began massing outside the Garden hours before the Monday evening tip-off, where they faced heavy security screening, a no-bag policy, and a line of fences and police officers that walled off the Midtown Manhattan arena and the surrounding area for blocks.
Trump’s appearance also meant the typical watch parties outside the arena were called off for the evening, despite the hordes of New Yorkers looking to celebrate the first Knicks finals appearance in more than two decades.
“The NYPD, in coordination with the Secret Service, made the decision for Game 3, where we have a presidential visit, that we could not support watch parties right outside of the Garden,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said earlier Monday.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.