In his acceptance speech at the Republican Party Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday evening, former President Donald Trump described the assassination attempt that almost killed him.
“I'm not supposed to be here tonight,” said a somber Trump, wearing a bandage over his right ear, which had been hit by a bullet. “As you already know, the assassin's bullet would have kept me alive by only a quarter of an inch.”
“I stand before you by the grace of Almighty God,” Trump said before walking up to and kissing fire chief Corey Comperatore's helmet during a campaign rally on Saturday. Comperatore was killed in the shooting of Thomas Crooks in Butler Township, Pennsylvania.
“As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a common destiny. We either fall together or we fall apart,” Trump said on the eve of the eighth anniversary of his first nomination for the presidency.
“Despite such a heinous attack, we are more united tonight than ever before. Our resolve is unbroken and our purpose is unchanged – to create a government that serves the American people,” Trump said.
Trump also expressed his “gratitude to the American people for the great love and support they have shown following the assassination.”
Former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump kisses a helmet and firefighter jacket that belonged to Corey Comperatore, who was fatally shot at a rally where Trump survived an assassination attempt, as he accepts his party's nomination on the final day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 18, 2024.
Kamil Krzaczynski | AFP | Getty Images
Trump told the convention audience, which included his wife Melania, his children and their partners: “I'm going to tell you what happened and you'll never hear it from me again because it's too painful to tell.”
Trump said that during the rally in Butler, he “had a great time speaking because I talked about the great job my administration has done on immigration at the southern border.”
“Behind me on the right was a large screen showing a map of the border crossings under my command,” he said. “To see the map, I turned to the right and was about to make another turn, which luckily I didn't, when I heard a loud hiss and felt something hit me really hard on my right ear.”
“I said to myself, 'Wow, what was that? That can only be a bullet.' I moved my right hand to my ear, brought it down and my hand was covered in blood,” Trump said. “I knew immediately that it was very serious, that we were being attacked, and in one single movement I dropped to the ground.”
Trump said his security staff rushed to the stage and offered him protection.
“Blood was everywhere, and yet in some ways I felt very safe because I had God on my side,” Trump said.
“The amazing thing is that if I hadn't moved my head at the very last moment before the shot, the assassin's bullet would have hit its target exactly and I wouldn't be with you tonight,” he said.
Trump said the “most incredible” thing about the attack, which injured Comperatore and two other men, was that the crowd of rallygoers did not panic and escape the gunfire.
“In fact, many of them courageously but automatically stood up, looked for the sniper and then began to aim at him,” Trump said.
Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump, with his bloodied face, is assisted by the Secret Service as several shots are fired during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 13, 2024.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
“Nobody ran away and because they didn't panic, many lives were saved,” he said. “But that's not the reason they didn't leave – the reason is because they knew I was in serious trouble, they saw all the blood and thought I was dead and they just didn't want to leave me and you can see that love in their faces.”
“When I stood up, surrounded by the Secret Service, the crowd was confused because they thought I was dead, and there was great sadness on their faces until I raised my right arm, looked at the thousands of people waiting breathlessly, and started shouting 'Fight, fight, fight.'”
Later in his speech, Trump said, “I am here tonight to present a vision to the entire nation.”
“To every citizen, young and old, man and woman, Democrat, Republican or Independent, black or white, Asian or Hispanic, I extend a hand of loyalty and friendship.”
Throughout his speech, Trump mentioned President Joe Biden by name only a few times – a notable departure from the personal attacks that have set the tone of many of his political speeches.
Until Thursday evening, Biden was still considered the likely Democratic candidate. But the sheer number of times Trump mentioned Biden's name underscored the very real possibility that Biden might not be on the ballot in November.
Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention (RNC) at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, July 18, 2024.
Brian Snyder | Reuters
Biden is under intense pressure from leading Democrats and rank-and-file members of Congress to drop out of the campaign because of his poor performance against Trump in a debate last month and growing concerns that he is no longer as mentally fit as he was a few years ago.
Later in his speech, Trump criticized the president's performance over the past three and a half years, particularly with regard to Biden's border policy.
“Less than four years ago, I handed this administration the strongest border in American history,” Trump said. “The current administration has ended every single one of those great Trump policies that I put in place to seal the border.”
“The greatest invasion in history is taking place right here in our country. They're coming from all parts of the world, not just South America, but Africa, Asia, the Middle East. They're coming from everywhere, and this administration is doing nothing to stop them,” Trump said.
Former U.S. First Lady Melania Trump waves as she arrives and U.S. Senator from Ohio and 2024 Republican Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance applauds on the final day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 18, 2024.
Andrew Caballero Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images
He said the United States was in the midst of “an inflation crisis that is making life unaffordable and destroying the incomes of working and low-income families.”
Trump promised the RNC that if he were elected, “the United States would be respected again.”
“No nation will question our power. No enemy will doubt our power.”
Trump's call for national unity and an end to “discord and division” comes nearly four years after he refused to accept the results of the 2020 election, which he lost to Biden despite serving only one term, falsely claiming he was the victim of widespread voter fraud.
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Trump, who demonizes Democrats and other opponents as fascists and communists, led a rally on January 6, 2021, calling on his supporters to march to the U.S. Capitol to protest the certification of Biden's victory.
Trump's supporters then stormed the Capitol, entered the halls of Congress and injured more than 100 police officers while delaying the certification of his defeat to Biden for hours. Trump's Vice President Mike Pence, who was presiding over the joint session of Congress that day, hid from the mob, which Trump refused to call off for hours.
In his speech on Thursday, Trump relied on an apocalyptic vision of the world, as he has done for years. But he presented that vision with significantly less fire than in the past.
“This is an international crisis the likes of which the world has rarely seen,” Trump said. “War is raging in Europe and the Middle East, there is a growing specter of conflict hanging over Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines and all of Asia, and our planet is on the brink of World War III, and this will be a war like no other.”
“It's time for a change,” Trump said. “We simply cannot continue this administration for another four years.”
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