Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of Washington Secrets. Donald Trump has arrived in Turkey for the NATO summit, and there is yet more upheaval in Britain’s domestic politics thanks to Nigel Farage. But we start by sitting down for lunch with Blake Marnell to find out how he became such a well-known figure at Trump rallies, even if you might not immediately recognize his name…
Spiderman was born when Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider. Bruce Bannon became the Incredible Hulk after being hit by the blast of a gamma bomb.
Brick Suit Guy’s origin story involves a burning desire to trigger liberals, an Amazon purchase, and a 2019 rally in Montoursville, Pennsylvania.
That is how Blake Marnell found himself being beckoned onstage by President Donald Trump while wearing a polyester suit designed to look like a red brick border wall.
“Get him up here,” Trump said as rally-goers chanted: “Build the wall!”
He became an immediate sensation, tracked down by a Fox News producer to appear on its flagship morning show.
“I don’t watch TV, so I didn’t even know what Fox and Friends was,” he told Secrets.
That could have been his entire 15 minutes of fame. But seven years later, he said it was the moment when a whole new avenue opened for him.
“Where my life changed was when I made the conscious decision to lean into this and wear it to rallies again to create, what I call, meming in real life,” he said over lunch at The Palm, a D.C. political hangout.
Since that fateful day, Mr. Wall, as he is sometimes known, has been one of the most recognizable figures at Trump rallies.
He scored a ticket to watch the recent White House UFC extravaganza, posting selfies with top Trump officials such as Dan Scavino, and his X account generates tens of thousands of reposts.
For the past seven years, Marnell’s trips have been carefully planned and scheduled to make the most of vacation time from his job with Costco in San Diego. (Until today, he kept his workplace a closely guarded secret to avoid being harassed.)
Now, he is ready for a new phase. He tells Secrets he has retired at 61, using his savings and social media income to support his plans to see more of America and attend even more rallies.
That means the midterm elections in November.
“There’s a number of important Senate races and House races, and to the extent that I can bring attention to those, and motivate some more people to possibly take a look at that candidate, or to go out and actually vote, I think that’s a positive thing,” he said.
On Saturday, he was planning to be at the National Mall for the Fourth of July celebration.
Which brings the conversation to a critical part of being Brick Suit Guy: When does he wear the suit?
With temperatures getting close to 100 degrees, it was likely a jacket-only kind of day, he said, paired with breathable hiking pants. “Most of the pictures you see are from the waist up,” he added.
But there are rules.
Full suit: Trump or JD Vance speaking. Conventions or similar events.
Half suit: Outdoor events, America First political rallies. Paired with slacks and dress shoes, where appropriate. Jeans and boots in Arizona.
Brick tie: Political events where he wants to be more low-key, lending support with creating a distraction.
He has four suits in rotation now, sourced online or from dead inventory at costume shops in the United Kingdom, where they were used at “stag parties” (bachelor parties).
One is stored at his parents’ home.
“That is the designated survivor suit,” he said. “If a meteor hits my house, I still have a suit on tap and ready to go.”
Another is the “A suit,” saved for big events and good weather. It also has a place in history as the suit worn by Marnell when he was in the front row at Butler, Pennsylvania, an eyewitness to the attempt on Trump’s life.
Replacing them is a constant nagging worry.
“It’s gonna be difficult because these suits are no longer in production,” he said, adding that he was even considering getting them made — if he can find the right cloth.
There is no question of retiring the suits when Trump, architect of the border wall program, leaves the White House.
“At its core, it really stands for an issue that I think is going to be evergreen in the United States, which is border security,” he said.
As we wrap up lunch. Mr. Wall has a busy weekend. After the fireworks on the Mall, he will be at the passport office on Monday morning, one of the first to receive the new documents with Trump’s image, before driving to Niagara Falls.
“I think there’s a good chance I’ll be first across an international border with the new passport,” he said.
Nigel Farage’s massive gamble
Just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be more turmoil in British politics, the country’s top shaker-upper triggers another election by resigning his seat in Parliament. Nigel Farage, leader of Reform U.K., announced his move amid allegations he failed to declare a $7.7 million gift from Christopher Harborne, a cryptocurrency billionaire, before the 2024 general election.
Farage insists he did nothing wrong. The money was not for political purposes, he argues, but for his security and thus did not need to be declared to parliamentary authorities.
Of course, Farage plans to be going nowhere. Campaigning is one of his great strengths, and his plan will be to fight and win, allowing him to declare himself as the people’s choice, while handing the governing Labour Party a bloody nose.
But it is a colossal “people versus the establishment” gamble. Expect coverage to be dominated by dissection after dissection of the allegations against him, which also include questions about the money he received from his close associate George Cottrell, a convicted fraudster.
If he loses, Secrets wonders whether we might see more of Farage on this side of the Atlantic. In his statement today, he said he had plenty of options if he decided to quit politics altogether.
“I could go out and try and make some real big money. I could go to the USA where I’ve got plenty of offers,” he said.
“And then I thought, why should I be judged today or in the future by Sky News or the media? Why should they be the people that decide my fate when as I repeat I’ve done nothing wrong?”
Anyway, never a dull moment in that part of the world.
Quote of the day
Belgium had much of the world supporting them on Monday when they knocked the U.S. out of the World Cup. Trump’s intervention in American striker Folarin Balogun’s red card and suspension, and the unprecedented decision by soccer’s world governing body to suspend the suspension so he could play in the Round of 16 match, only motivated the Belgian players, they said after winning 4-1.
The Belgian team’s official X account posted photos from the win, with the message: “Overturn this.”
Lunchtime reading
Platner proves Democratic establishment is alive and well: Dennis Lennox argues that Republicans should show the same discipline when candidates undermine the party’s election prospects.
Rutte to NATO: Admit it — Trump was right: The president has arrived in Turkey, where NATO leaders are on edge, hoping their plans to placate Trump will work. And leading the effort is NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
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