Nearly three months after he was nearly killed by an assassin’s bullet, former President Donald Trump traveled to Butler, Pennsylvania, to return to a place of “tragedy” to promise his supporters victory in the Nov. 5 presidential election .
In the July 13 shooting, a volunteer fire captain was killed, two bystanders were seriously injured, and Trump was shot in the ear.
“Time stood still for 15 seconds,” Trump told the crowd. “This vicious monster, doing evil…the bad guy didn’t succeed in his purpose.”
However, security was tight at Saturday’s rally – with heightened Secret Service scrutiny following a second assassination attempt on Trump last month.
Also in attendance were Trump’s running mate J.D. Vance, son Eric Trump, daughter-in-law Laura Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk, who supported Trump after the earlier shooting. general.
Trump largely stuck to familiar themes in his speech, denouncing a “corrupt system,” pledging to restore “respect” to U.S. foreign policy and vowing to close “open borders” that he claimed were the root cause of crime.
“You deserve a government that protects and respects its citizens and defends your sovereignty, security, dignity and freedom,” he told the crowd to loud applause.
He also lashed out at his political opponents, accusing them of “slandering” him and trying to interfere in the election and “who knows – maybe even try to kill me.”
“But I never stop fighting for you,” he added. “Never.”
Trump repeatedly mentioned previous shootings, and the event also held a moment of silence for firefighter Corey Competore, who was killed in a July shooting.
“He has become something of a folk hero,” Trump added. “Our beautiful Corey.”
The former president was full of praise for Elon Musk and specifically invited him on stage.
The tech billionaire told the crowd he believed this was the “most important election of our lifetimes” and exhorted voters to register and elect Trump.
Between 25,000 and 30,000 people were expected to attend the rally, which brought traffic to a standstill throughout the rural town of Butler on Saturday. Many waited in the scorching sun for up to 10 hours before being allowed to pass a long line of vendors selling Trump/Vance campaign flags, hats, signs and orange wigs modeled after the former president.
“I certainly admire his willingness to come back here and give a speech that was denied last time,” said Teresa Wilson, a former U.S. Marine who also attended the last rally on July 13.
“I would understand if he avoided coming back – I know some viewers don’t want to come back and some are very concerned,” she added. “If he is able to stand in the position he has tried before, then of course we as his constituency can step up and offer our support.”
With just 31 days left before Americans cast their votes, polls show a tight race between Trump and Kamala Harris in the hotly contested battleground state of Pennsylvania.
For example, the New York Times and Siena data show that the two are almost tied, with Harris’ approval rating 49% to 48%.
In dozens of interviews with Trump supporters at rallies, most cited the economy — and inflation in particular — as their top concern ahead of the election.
“We are not taken care of. People can’t afford food. They can barely afford gas [petrol]” said Jessenia Anderson, a Pennsylvania voter wearing a red “Latinos for Trump” T-shirt. “I have a family, but I find I make cheaper money. [meals]buy something cheaper.
Others – such as fellow Tennessean rapper Sean Moon – pointed to the U.S.-Mexico border and immigration as key reasons for their support of the former president.
“This is an existential threat to this country,” said Moon Jae-in, the son of North Korean refugees, who said Butler’s event was his 15th consecutive Trump rally.
“There are people who come in without vetting. They lie and get rewarded for it. That doesn’t help North Carolina or Maui,” he added, referring to Hurricane Helene and last year’s wildfires in Hawaii.
