Donald Trump says he ‘took a bullet for democracy’ at first rally after assassination attempt
Donald Trump said on Saturday that he “took a bullet for democracy”, as he fired up supporters at his first campaign rally since surviving an assassination attempt.
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Former President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he “took a bullet for democracy”, as he fired up supporters at his first campaign rally since surviving an assassination attempt last week.
“They keep saying, ‘He’s a threat to democracy.’ I’m saying, ‘What the hell did I do to democracy?’” Trump told the cheering crowd of more than 12,000 at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“Last week I took a bullet for democracy. What did I do against democracy? Crazy.”
His vice presidential running mate, J.D. Vance, spoke ahead of Trump in their first appearance on the campaign trail together. The Ohio Senator spent part of his time on stage slamming Vice President Kamala Harris, asking rallygoers “what the hell” she has ever done and noting his own service as a US Marine.
Trump took the stage after Mr Vance, beginning his speech by saying that he “shouldn’t be here right now, but something very, something very special happened”. He took a moment to recognise the supporters who were injured or killed at the rally last week.
“We continue to pray for the recovery of the two citizens who were wounded in that evil attack — David Dutch and James Copenhaver, two really incredible people,” the Republican frontrunner said. “We remain in contact and send our deepest respect to the families.”
Trump also acknowledged the death of Corey Comperatore, calling him a “hero” for protecting his family from the bullets.
“Corey Comperatore was a brave firefighter who died, [his] funeral [was] yesterday,” Trump said. “Corey was a hero. And we will carry his memory in our hearts for all time.”
The Michigan rally followed a triumphant convention that formalised him as the Republican Party’s White House nominee. It also marks exactly one week since the attempted killing of the former US President at a Pennsylvania rally last Saturday when a 20-year-old gunman opened fire, injuring him and others, and killing one rally-goer.
As thousands of spectators gathered outside Van Andel Arena to get a glimpse of Trump, his personal doctor Ronny Jackson revealed the extent of the former President’s injuries from the gunshot to his ear.
In a statement, Dr Jackson said he had been treating Trump every day since he was shot.
“I have evaluated and treated his wound daily. He is doing well. As reported and witnessed by the entire world, he sustained a gunshot wound to the right ear from a high-powered rifle used by the would be assassin,” he wrote.
“The bullet passed, coming less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head, and struck the top of his right ear.”
“The bullet track produced a 2cm wide wound that extended down to the cartilaginous surface of the ear. There was initially significant bleeding, followed by marked swelling of the entire upper ear.”
According to the doctor, the swelling has since resolved, and the wound is beginning to heal. “Based on the highly vascular nature of the ear, there is still intermittent bleeding requiring a dressing to be in place,” he added.
“Given the broad and blunt nature of the wound itself, no sutures were required.”
Dr Jackson described Trump’s survival as an “absolute miracle he wasn’t killed”.
“I am extremely thankful his life was spared,” he said.
Michigan is one of the crucial swing states expected to determine the outcome of the presidential election. Thousands of people lined the streets in Grand Rapids and cheered for Trump as they awaited his arrival on Saturday.
“I’m going in and seeing one of the strongest S.O.B.’s there is, plain and simple,” Sherri Bonoite, a 75-year-old grandmother from Michigan attending her first Trump rally, told AFP.
“Even a speeding bullet couldn’t stop him. And he’s what this country needs.”
Trump won the state by just over 10,000 votes in 2016, before Mr Biden ripped it back in 2020, winning by a margin of 154,000 votes on his way to the presidency.
Trump’s Michigan rally comes as Joe Biden’s campaign is grappling with an internal Democratic Party revolt from senior politicians and donors calling on the 81-year-president to quit the race.
Mr Biden has paused campaigning to recuperate from a case of Covid, while he and his inner circle engage in political firefighting as party stalwarts warn that by remaining on the ticket, he could lead Democrats to defeat of the White House and both chambers of Congress.
Team Trump for its part is effervescent. This week’s four-day Republican National Convention went off without a hitch, and the 78-year-old candidate’s mission of demonstrating absolute control over the party and firing up his base appears accomplished.
With Saturday’s 5:00pm (7am AET) indoor assemblage in downtown Grand Rapids, Trump embraces a moment remarkable by any measure: striding back on stage exactly one week since a 20-year-old gunman on a rooftop sprayed an outdoor Pennsylvania rally with bullets, killing one attendee and wounding Trump.
“I had God on my side,” he told the convention Thursday, as he described how a bullet narrowly missed his head and grazed his ear.
Eyes on security
Trump may not discuss details of last week’s trauma, as he told the recent convention: “You’ll never hear it from me a second time because it’s actually too painful to tell.”
Instead he will flaunt his new status as the party’s flag-bearer after officially accepting the nomination at the convention – and bask in the adoring reception in store for when he walks out to a partisan crowd.
He will almost certainly dive into the aggressive rhetoric of his typical campaign speeches, in which he assails the administration over illegal immigration, inflation, crime, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, China policy and oil drilling.
All eyes however will be on the security posture, especially given how major questions remain over Secret Service lapses at the Pennsylvania event.
Trump will speak inside an enclosed 12,000-capacity sports facility that allows more complete control of a perimeter.
Security nevertheless is expected to be extra tight around Trump in the wake of the most egregious Secret Service failure in decades.
On Friday, a Florida man was accused of making “written threats to kill” Trump, Vance and their families just days after the failed assassination.
The Jupiter Police Department announced that 68-year-old Michael M. Wiseman was arrested on Friday for charges for written threats to kill.
Authorities alleged that Wiseman wrote threats against the Republican presidential nominee and vice presidential nominee on his Facebook account and also made to members of the Trump and Vance families.
The police department said it was notified of the threats, including bodily harm, by multiple members of the community.
Jupiter, Florida is about 20 miles, or an approximately 30-minute drive, north of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach.
“JPD co-ordinated the investigation with the United States Secret Service and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office,” the department said. “JPD officers took Wiseman into custody without incident.”
Trump also makes his debut campaign appearance with vice presidential pick Vance, a US senator from Ohio who at age 39 could appeal to younger voters.
And Vance’s blue-collar connection could help Trump, a billionaire businessman, win over critical swing states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Meanwhile Mr Biden’s campaign is lurching from crisis to crisis. A disastrous debate performance against Trump three weeks ago sparked panic about his age and health, and whether the veteran politician has the capacity to stave off a resurgent Trump in November.
Most polls show Trump on course for an Oval Office return.
More than 30 House Democrats and four senators have now called on Mr Biden to drop out, and several party luminaries including Barack Obama have reportedly urged the president to reconsider his decision to stay in the race.
– with AFP and Fox News
Originally published as Donald Trump says he ‘took a bullet for democracy’ at first rally after assassination attempt
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