ESTERO, Fla. -- A well known water activist in Southwest Florida was kicked out of Donald Trump's Estero rally because security thought he might protest.
However, the man said he wasn't showing any signs of a protest. John Heim recorded the ejection and posted it to Facebook. The video shows Donald Trump supporters cheering as Heim got the boot.
"I don't want to talk bad about Donald Trump or his supporters, but I was attacked by these people, verbally, had things thrown at me," said Heim.
Ironically, the SWFL Clean Water Movement founder said he doesn't have a problem with the presidential candidate. "People seem to think that I'm against Trump, when in realty, I was probably looking to vote for Trump," he said.
Heim went to the rally to listen, and if he had the chance, speak to Trump about the Lake Okeechobee water releases affecting Southwest Florida's water quality, hoping he would sign his 'Now or Neverglades' petition. "There's an ecological disaster out there called the lake Okeechobee discharges. The only thing I'm trying to do is communicate with the right people, elected officials, politicians, from here to the white house," he said.
So why did he get kicked out? Heim tells Fox 4 the Secret Service told him it was because they 'heard he was a protester'.
Fox 4 reached out to the Trump campaign about Heim getting kicked out. They replied that they hadn't heard about it. However, Heim doesn't have a problem with the Trump campaign. He suspects local politicians tipped off Secret Service, suggesting they remove him. "They're so in fear that I may even utter the words Lake Okeechobee," said Heim.
Heim feels fear that someone might protest, simply isn't enough to throw someone out without action. "You can't kick people out because you have a perception of them. If they would have let me stay, who knows what outcome could have come," he said. "I may have had the chance to speak with Mr. Trump and he would've gone into steadfast mode and maybe a year or two from now, he would be starting to solve this problem."
