Donald Trump has told supporters he had “God on his side” in his first speech since narrowly surviving an assassination attempt.
Appearing on stage at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, the party’s presidential nominee recounted details of the attack which saw him shot in the ear at a Pennsylvania rally last Saturday.
The 78-year-old former president said the bullet “came within a quarter of an inch of taking my life”.
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With a bandaged ear, he told the rapt audience: “I’ll tell you what happened, and you’ll never hear it from me a second time, because it’s too painful.”
Mr Trump recalled he had been at the podium in the town of Butler and turned to refer to a screen displaying a chart.
He said: “I heard a loud whizzing sound and felt something hit me really, really hard on my right ear,
“I said to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It can only be a bullet’, and moved my right hand to my ear, brought it down, and my hand was covered with blood.
“I immediately knew it was very serious, that we were under attack, and in one movement, proceeded to drop to the ground.”
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With photos of Mr Trump bloodied on screens behind him, he added: “Bullets continued to fly as very brave Secret Service agents rushed to the stage and pounced on top of me for protection.
“There was blood pouring everywhere, and yet, in a certain way I felt very safe because I had God on my side.
“The amazing thing is that prior to the shot, if I had not moved my head at the very last instant, the assassin’s bullet would have perfectly hit its mark, and I would not be here tonight.”
When he told the Milwaukee crowd he was “not supposed to be here,” the delegates chanted back, “Yes you are.”
Mr Trump also paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, the volunteer firefighter who was killed in the gun attack, kissing his fire helmet.
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Among the celebrities appearing at the convention to endorse Mr Trump was wrestler Hulk Hogan, who fired up the crowd by tearing his top in half to reveal a sleeveless red Trump campaign shirt.
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‘They took a shot at my hero!’
Mr Trump’s 90-minute speech – the longest in convention history – capped a four-day event where he was greeted with adulation by the party faithful.
Initially, he struck an unusually conciliatory tone as he formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination for the 5 November election.
In a marked shift from his normally bombastic stance, he said: “I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America.”
He added he was “more determined than ever” to “deliver a government that serves the American people”.
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But he then returned to more familiar attacks on President Joe Biden’s administration, which he said was “destroying” the country.
Without evidence, he claimed his criminal charges were part of a Democratic conspiracy, predicted Mr Biden’s leadership would lead to “World War Three”, and described what he called an “invasion” of migrants over the Mexican border.
He also repeated his false claim that Democrats stole the 2020 election.
In addition, Mr Trump maintained the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza would not have happened if he was president.
“I could stop wars with a telephone call,” he said.
As he concluded his family and that of his running mate, Senator JD Vance, walked onto the stage as balloons dropped from the ceiling.
Among them was Mr Trump’s wife Melania, who is rarely seen on the campaign trail.
Meanwhile, pressure continued to mount on Mr Biden to quit the White House race.
The 81-year-old is isolating at his Delaware home after contracting COVID-19.
His doctor said he was experiencing mild symptoms.
Source : Sky News
