Trump on MSG rally criticism: 'It was love for our country,' Nazi comparisons 'terrible to say'

GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump responded Tuesday to accusations that his campaign rally Sunday in New York City was marked by racist and xenophobic remarks, saying there was "love in the room and it was love for our country."

The comments were made by a warm-up comedian who preceded the featured speakers and Trump, a former president, at Madison Square Garden.

Trump, in his speech Tuesday morning at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, called comparisons some Democrats have made between his rally and the 1939 Nazi rally at the same venue "terrible to say."

He also said the sold-out event was "breathtaking," and he described it as an "absolute love fest."

Trump said that Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is referencing Adolf Hitler and the Nazis in the homestretch of the presidential campaign because "her record is horrible."

Trump argued Harris has "obliterated" the U.S.-Mexico border in less than four years.

Trump pledged to seize the assets of "criminal gangs" and drug cartels and using the funds to provide restitution for the families of victims of illegal immigrant crime.

"We're the party of common sense and we're the party of fairness," he said.

He said Harris wanted to defund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a U.S. senator from California. He said ICE is essential for apprehending and deporting illegal immigrants with criminal records.

Trump repeated that migrants who kill someone on U.S. soil should face the death penalty. 

The former president noted that the U.S. Border Patrol has endorsed him again for the 2024 election.

"I'm running on a plan to save America," Trump said. "It's going to be saving it from the incredible destruction that's been caused by crooked Joe Biden and Kamala."

Trump said that there have been some "bad spots" in Pennsylvania, referring to the fraudulent absentee ballots discovered in two counties, but overall the "election itself is going very well."

"We're going to fight like hell for the next seven days," he said.