Trump calls Pennsylvania gunman 'vicious monster' as he returns to site of assassination attempt
"As I was saying", Donald Trump said as he opened up his speech at the same place an assassination attempt was made against him, ITV News' Olivia Guthrie
Former US President Donald Trump returned to the stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, for a campaign rally at the same place an assassination attempt was made against him in July.
He began his speech by remarking "as I was saying", a joke in reference to how he was cut short by the firing of shots when he previously made a speech in the town.
He said: “Tonight I return to Butler in the aftermath of tragedy and heartache to deliver a simple message to the people of Pennsylvania and to the people of America.
“Our movement to make America great again, stand stronger, prouder, more united, more determined, and nearer to victory than ever before.”
Trump went on to call the gunman who made an attempt on his life a "vicious monster", and said he did not succeed by “by the hand of providence and the grace of God.”
“Twelve weeks ago, we all took a bullet for America,” he said said. “All we are all asking is that everyone goes out and votes. We got to win. We can’t let this happen to our country.”
At the beginning of the rally, Trump asked for a moment of silence to honor firefighter Corey Comperatore, who died as he shielded family members from gunfire in July.
Classical singer Christopher Macchio sang “Ave Maria” after a bell rung at the same time that gunfire began on July 13.
Several of Comperatore's family members were in attendance, including his widow, Helen, who stood during Trump's remarks next to the former president's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump.
On July 13, Donald Trump was whisked off stage at a rally in Butler after shots were fired towards him. He ducked and was surrounded by Secret Service agents, before rising to his feet and pumping his fist in the air, to cheers from the crowd.
The FBI named 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the gunman. He was killed at the scene.
It was the most serious attempt to assassinate a US president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.
Trump's running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, also spoke at Saturday's event, criticising Democrats for their use of inflammatory language towards the former president.
"I believe it as sure as I’m standing here today that what happened was a true miracle,” he said.
He criticised the Democrats for calling Trump “a threat to democracy,” saying that kind of language is “inflammatory.""You heard the shots. You saw the blood. We all feared the worst. But you knew everything would be OK when President Trump raised his fist high in the air and shouted, ‘Fight, fight!’", Vance added.
One of the most anticipated guests of the evening was SpaceX and Tesla CEO, and owner of X, Elon Musk.
Musk climbed onto the stage on Saturday jumping and pumping his fists in the air after Trump introduced him as a “great gentleman” and said he “saved free speech”.“President Trump must win to preserve the Constitution. He must win to preserve democracy in America,” he said, adding: "This is a must-win situation.”
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Hundreds of rally attendees began lining up on Saturday morning, as the area's hotels were said to be fully booked.
A memorial for Corey Comperatore, who died as he shielded family members from gunfire, was set up, his fireman's jacket set up on display surrounded by flowers.
The building from which Crooks fired from in July was completely obscured by tractor trailers, a large grassy perimeter and a fence.
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