'I will never yield': Trump delivers defiant speech at site of his attempted assassination
It started as a memorial and ended as a standard rally speech.
After a shocking assassination attempt that brought the specter of political violence to an already tense White House campaign, 2024 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump returned to the crime scene Saturday to deliver a defiant speech, declaring “I will never yield, not even in the face of death itself.”
His remarks represented yet another dramatic moment in a toss-up race that has American voters on edge.
Trump’s return to Butler, Pennsylvania exactly three months after being shot there punctuates a remarkable stretch in the nation’s political life, one that saw the Democrats swap their top-of-the-ticket candidate and the Secret Service foil a second alleged Trump assassination plot.
The former Republican president also is now speaking behind bullet proof glass in a campaign that has been one of the most extraordinary in modern times – unstable, violent and high stakes.
The Butler shooting hasn't appeared to significantly change the trajectory of the race. President Joe Biden dropped out shortly afterward and Vice President Kamala Harris has been running much stronger since she took his spot.
Yet it has become central to Trump’s campaign and claims that he is a persecuted figure. Before Saturday, Trump had appeared in public at least 51 times since the shooting and referenced it in 31 of those appearances, according to a USA TODAY analysis.
Trump and his allies have been tying the assassination attempt to other travails, including his legal cases and impeachments.
“Those who want to stop us… have slandered me, impeached me, indicted me, tried to throw me off the ballot, and, who knows, maybe even tried to kill me,” Trump said Saturday.
Trump in Butler didn’t mention by name the actual shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks. The FBI still hasn’t found a motive for Crooks. That didn’t stop Trump’s allies from claiming again, without evidence, that Democratic rhetoric contributed to the shooting.
Trump initially struck a much more compassionate and empathetic tone Saturday than at his typically combative rallies, spending considerable time honoring the victims of July 13. Rallygoer Corey Comperatore was killed that day, and two other attendees were injured. Trump praised “our beautiful Corey" and met with his family before the event.
He also lauded the U.S. Secret Service, and Butler public safety personnel - but eventually veered into full-throated negative politics.
More: As Donald Trump returns to Butler, Pa., there’s one name he never mentions: Thomas Crooks
Noting that Election Day is now only a month away, Trump attacked migrants and pledged mass deportations, hammered the Biden administration's hurricane response, lauded running mate JD Vance's debate performance, protested the many investigations of his conduct, bragged about what he said are good poll numbers, and criticized what he called a "very corrupt political establishment."
“I will never quit, I will never bend, I will never break, I will never yield - not even in the face of death itself," Trump said.
At one point, Trump said "we have an enemy within," but did not specifically identify it. He also told supporters that "we have an evil world - we have a very sick world."
Trump did not mention Harris or Biden in the early part of his speech, but eventually got around to familiar rally-style riffs against "Kamala" and other Democrats.
He also told supporters that "twelve weeks ago, we all took a bullet for America," and that a victory by him in the election would be "the greatest achievement in the history of politics."
The rally also featured a special guest: Billionaire businessman Elon Musk, who attacked Biden over his age and said Trump's reaction to the shooting showed "courage under fire." Musk also predicted dire consequences if Trump supporters don't register and vote.
“If they don't, this will be the last election," Musk said. "That’s my prediction."
Trump's speech capped a full-day program that was part memorial and part political rally, featuring Republican candidates, musicians, parachutists, and a flyover by Trump's airplane.
"What an amazing crowd," Trump running mate JD Vance said during his time on stage at the rally. "We're here to say we can't be intimidated - we cannot be stopped. We won't be denied."
While paying tribute to Trump and the shooting victims, Vance also attacked Harris and other Trump opponents for using "dangerous, inflammatory rhetoric" that has created an atmosphere for violence.
"It was only a matter of time before somebody tried to kill him," Vance said.
Vance attacked Harris for describing the Republican candidate as a threat to democracy, and added: "Donald Trump took a bullet for democracy - what the hell have you done?"
Vance did not mention Trump's own use of violent rhetoric throughout his political career.
The Trump campaign also sought to turn the Butler event into a fundraising opportunity.
During the day, the campaign sent out fundraising solicitations with an all-caps quote from Trump saying: "I'M BACK IN BUTLER TO ADDRESS THE NATION! If every PATRIOT chips in $5, we'll set a RALLY RECORD:"
While Vance hit the Democrats for incendiary rhetoric, some of the Republican speakers in Butler supplied intemperate rhetoric of their own about the tense and close election.
"This is no longer a fight between Republican versus Democrat - left versus right - it is good versus evil," said Lara Trump, the ex-president's daughter-in-law and a co-chair of the Republican National Committee. "And good is going to win this battle."
(This story has been updated with new photos and information.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump returns to Butler after shooting, declares 'I will never yield'