2024-07-21 02:22:01
GRAND RAPIDS, Miss. (AP) — Donald Trump held his first campaign rally Saturday since surviving an assassination attempt, returning to the electoral battleground state of Michigan with his newly appointed running mate.
“That was a whole week ago, down to the hour, down to the minute,” Trump told the crowd, recalling the July 13 shooting in Pennsylvania that ended with a bloody ear and a supporter And it ends with the death of other spectators.
Trump and Ohio Sen. Vance attended the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, their first event since becoming the Republican nominee.
“It’s hard for me to believe that a week ago a murderer tried to take Donald Trump’s life and now there’s a large crowd in Michigan welcoming him back to the campaign trail,” Vance said before Trump arrived.
Michigan is one of several key swing states expected to determine the outcome of November’s presidential election. Trump won the state by just over 10,000 votes in 2016, but Democrat Joe Biden turned the tide in 2020, winning the presidency by 154,000 votes.
After appearing unusually subdued and emotional during the Republican convention, Trump returned to his usual campaign style, insulting his Democratic rivals, repeating his lies regarding the 2020 election and adding in speeches that drew enthusiastic audiences Laughter jokes.
Attendees were asked to pass through metal detectors when entering the venue, but security measures inside the venue appeared to be consistent with previous events.
“This is the tightest security I’ve ever seen,” said Renee White, who said she has attended 33 Trump rallies. “Normally we can bring little bags, but today I had to leave my stuff outside.”
White was sitting behind a podium at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a gunman opened fire from a nearby rooftop. The woman described the shooting as “surreal” but said it would not stop her from attending his rallies.
“If they’re going to kill me, at least I’m doing what I love, right?” On Saturday, she was back behind Trump, sitting in almost the same seat she had at Butler.
Trump selected Vance in part to help him win over voters in states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Ohio that helped Trump achieve an unexpected victory in 2016. These places were specifically mentioned in the acceptance speech.
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