DEFIANT Donald Trump has returned to the scene of the attempt to assassinate him in Pennsylvania.
The former US President — hoping to retake the White House next month — returned to Butler, telling his adoring fans: “I’m fulfilling an obligation.”
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He joked: “A very big thank you to Pennsylvania.
“We love Pennsylvania, and as I was saying…”
The Republican candidate, 78, is in an incredibly tight race with Democrat Kamala Harris and will likely need the Keystone State’s votes to win.
After returning to the site where he was shot in July, Trump pledged never to quit, “not even in the face of death itself”.
He said: “We fought together. We have endured together. We have pushed onward together.
“And right here in Pennsylvania, we have bled together. We’ve bled.”
The former president’s face was left spattered with blood when a sniper’s bullet grazed his ear in the shocking act of violence, in which Trump supporter Corey Comperatore died.
Gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks was shot dead by Secret Service snipers moments later.
Trump said: “Exactly 12 weeks ago… on this very ground, a cold-blooded assassin aimed to silence me and to silence the greatest movement.
“For 16 harrowing seconds during the gunfire, time stopped as this vicious monster unleashed pure evil from his sniper’s perch.
“But by the hand of Providence and the grace of God, that villain did not succeed in his goal. Did not come close.
“He did not stop our movement. He did not break out our spirit.”
Trump appeared on stage alongside running mate JD Vance and billionaire supporter Elon Musk.
The trio all spoke from behind a large glass screen surrounding the stage.
Tesla founder Musk jumped into the air and did a star jump while on stage and joked he was in “dark MAGA” as his hat was black.
The family of Comperatore, the rally-goer killed when 20-year-old gunman Crooks opened fire on Trump was also present.
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A massive crowd stood shoulder to shoulder from the stage all the way back to the press stand several hundred yards away at the event, billed as a “tribute to the American spirit”.
Area hotels, motels and inns were reported to be full with crowds lining up as the sun rose on Saturday.
A memorial for firefighter Comperatore was set up in the bleachers, with his fireman’s jacket on display surrounded by flowers.
There was a visibly heightened security presence, with armed law enforcement officers in camouflage uniforms on roofs.
Trump’s plane did fly-bys over the venue before his arrival, drawing cheers from those gathered on the field below.
The man who allegedly staked out Trump on his golf course in Florida has been charged with attempting to assassinate him.
Suspect Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was denied bail at a court hearing on Monday – hours after prosecutors cited a letter offering $150,000 to “finish the job” as evidence of why he should be kept locked up pending trial.
Routh had been initially charged with two federal firearms offences but the upgraded charges reflect the Justice Department’s assessment that he plotted to kill Trump.
They claim this is through Routh aiming a rifle through the shrubbery surrounding Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course on an afternoon the ex-president was playing on it.
In an interview with Dr. Phil, Trump placed some blame on President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, for the assassination attempt on his life.
Trump said he believed Biden did not “care about his health and safety,” despite the president reaching out and speaking to him shortly after the July 13 attack.
The Republican presidential candidate described his relationship with Biden as having “a lot of hatred.”
When questioned by Dr. Phil as to whether he thought Biden and Harris cared if he was hurt, Trump responded, “I don’t know.”
“He always made it very tough for us to have the proper number of Secret Service people,” he said of President Biden.
“I have these massive rallies with 50-60,000 people or more… and our people were always fighting to get more security, more Secret Service, and [Biden] knew that we didn’t have enough.”
Donald Trump’s Full Statement Post-Rally Shooting in July
Former president Donald Trump provided an update on Truth Social after the shooting that took place at his Pennsylvania rally on July 13.
“I want to thank The United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the Rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured.
“It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country.
“Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear.
“I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin.
“Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”
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