Country star and unapologetic Trump supporter John Rich revealed he played a key role in shifting the tone of Trump’s rallies after supporters grew frustrated with one topic: the vaccine.
Speaking on the Try That in a Small Town Podcast, Rich recounted a private meeting with Donald Trump that included Senators Lindsey Graham, Marsha Blackburn, Bill Hagerty, and Herschel Walker. According to Rich, Trump was proud of how fast the vaccine had been developed, but didn’t realize how deeply his base distrusted the institutions behind it.
Rich didn’t hold back. He told Trump that people in his life had experienced serious complications from the shot, and that the crowd’s boos weren’t personal—they were directed at the very system Trump had to rely on in the heat of the pandemic.
What made it clear to Trump, Rich said, was when he added that he would boo too if he were in the crowd.
Even as Senator Graham reportedly tried to defend the vaccine rollout, Rich said the message landed. Trump looked around the table and, soon after, made the decision: no more vaccine talk on the campaign trail.
It’s a rare look inside the kind of honest feedback Trump gets from trusted voices—and a reminder that his connection to the American people remains strong because he’s willing to listen.
