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It's difficult to take a writer seriously when the first sentence includes a phrase like this:

...as he looks to maintain his tight grip on the GOP base.

[Dave W]

What's wrong with that statement? It appears neutral to me. Trump does have a tight grip on the base and I have to assume he wants to maintain a tight grip, which is why the rallies exist in the first place or one of the ways he keeps in the public eye. There is much that happens behind the scenes, too, but he needs to also be public.

The behind the scenes is building his influence in local and state republican committees, etc. which is a lot of work and depends on people showing up at local city/county republican meetings and voting for local party positions, etc etc etc. These rallies can help facilitate that cause. I assume his grip on these folks is not as great as the base as a whole, but he should be stronger than he was a few years ago even though he "lost" the election. So I think the statement is fair and accurate.

I recognize you may have a completely different interpretation.