A fundraising campaign to cover legal costs for a man arrested for slashing open a 'Baby Trump' balloon has topped $36,000 in just one day. The inflatable was being flown by a group of people protesting US President Donald Trump's Sunday visit to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, when local resident Hoyt Hutchinson, 32, ran up and cut an eight-foot slash in the balloon with a knife. Officers arrested him as he attempted to flee and charged him with felony first-degree criminal mischief. He was later bailed on a $2,500 bond. console.log("catid body is "+catID);if(catID==120){document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none";var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://player.anyclip.com/anyclip-widget/lre-widget/prod/v1/src/lre.js'; script.setAttribute('pubname','jpostcom'); script.setAttribute('widgetname','0011r00001lcD1i_12258'); document.getElementsByClassName('divAnyClip')[0].appendChild(script);}else if(catID!=69 && catID!=2){ document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none"; var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://static.vidazoo.com/basev/vwpt.js'; script.setAttribute('data-widget-id','60fd6becf6393400049e6535'); document.getElementsByClassName('divVidazoo')[0].appendChild(script); }Following his release, Hutchinson posted a Facebook Live video in which he said: "Some liberals tried to come to my hometown and start some trouble. That ain’t happening. I did get arrested. I got charged. That’s all right. I’d do it again given the opportunity.”A GoFundMe page set up by someone under the name Hoyt Hutchinson was launched Sunday afternoon with a goal of $6,000 to cover legal fees. "Hoyt made sure our beloved president didn’t have to see this disrespectful balloon on the streets of Ttown [sic] today!!" the campaign blurb read. Within 24 hours, the campaign had topped $36,600. An update to the campaign announced that all proceeds not required for legal fees would be donated to the Trump 2020 campaign. A second GoFundMe page set up by a supporter raised a further $12,900. The Baby Trump balloon was first seen over Parliament Square, London, in July 2018 to protest the president's visit to the UK. Since then, a number of replicas have been made and flown in France, Argentina, Ireland and Denmark. A number of replicas have been made in the US, where they are hired out to protesters around the country by "babysitters," volunteers at the Baby Trump Tour website. Anti-Trump protesters had raised $7,882 to bring the balloon to a park near the Bryant-Denny Stadium ahead of the Alabama-LUS football game, with funds in excess of the $4,500 required for the rental being donated to Equal Justice Initiative. Robert Kennedy, a volunteer helping with the balloon, said the day had been going smoothly, with some people shouting "Trump 2020" as they passed, while others posing for selfies. Then a man approached, attacked the balloon with a knife and it immediately began to sag. The man ran away, but was caught by police officers. In a video posted to Facebook before the event, Hutchinson said: "I’m shaking, I’m so mad right now... I’m fixing to pop this balloon, without a doubt. Stay tuned. This should be interesting.“I’m going down here to make a scene, so y’all watch the news,” he added. "This is pathetic. I’m fixing to get rowdy.”
