The FBI is reportedly investigating a group of pickup trucks and other vehicles flying President Donald Trump flags that surrounded a Joe Biden campaign bus on a Texas highway, forcing the Democratic side to cancel a planned appearance.
As the New York Post reported, the high-speed confrontation that took place on Friday was caught on video, showing the convoy of trucks approaching and surrounding the bus. The report noted that there was at least one minor collision, which took place as some of the trucks allegedly honked horns and forced the bus to slow down.
The Biden campaign spoke out against the incident, accusing Trump supporters of dangerous actions.
“Rather than engage in productive conversation about the drastically different visions that Joe Biden and Donald Trump have for our country, Trump supporters in Texas instead decided to put our staff, surrogates, supporters, and others in harm’s way,” a spokesperson said, via the New York Post .
There were no injuries reported, though the confrontation led Biden’s outfit to cancel a planned appearance, continuing on to Austin for another event that had already been planned.
A number of other politicians have spoken out after the incident, the report added, including U.S. Rep Lloyd Doggett, who condemned the confrontation and accused Trump of inciting the “aggressive, abusive conduct.” Trump later took to Twitter to share a short video of the highway encounter and a supportive message. This led to sharp criticism, with opponents accusing him of encouraging violence against political opponents.
I LOVE TEXAS! pic.twitter.com/EP7P3AvE8L
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2020
The Texas Tribune noted that the FBI is now involved, though it was not clear exactly what was under investigation.
The report noted that several 911 calls were made as the vehicles were driving close to the Biden vehicle, and staffers had requested a police escort. Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler appeared to place some blame on Biden’s campaign, saying that they did not notify his office they would be passing through the county to allow law enforcement to prepare for confrontations. Cutler said that the timing was “questionable.”
Texas has become a battleground in the 2020 presidential election, with a series of polls showing the candidates tightly matched. The state had once been a Republican stronghold, but Democrats have performed better in recent cycles, and this year it has become a major focus for both Republicans and Democrats. Biden has held a number of events there in recent days, sending surrogates to hold events across the state.