- Donald Trump mocks his rival, the Democratic Party.
- He says: “They have no idea who their candidate is…”
- Biden loyalists continue to defend the embattled president.
At his first campaign rally since surviving an assassination attempt, Donald Trump on Saturday dismissed concerns that he is a threat to democracy, triumphantly telling a cheering crowd: “Last week I took a bullet for democracy.”
“I'm not an extremist at all,” the Republican continued at the rally in the key state of Michigan, dismissing his alleged ties to Project 2025, a parallel manifesto put together by figures close to him that has been characterized by his opponents as an authoritarian, right-wing wish list.
And he mocked the rival Democratic Party, roiled by unprecedented pressure for President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid amid concerns about his age and fitness to serve, if reelected, until 2029.
“You have no idea who your candidate is… This guy goes out and gets the votes, and now they want to take them away from him. That's democracy,” Trump told the crowd of 12,000 passionate supporters.
In an impassioned but typically rambling speech, the Republican president referenced his hardline views on immigration while spreading falsehoods about crimes committed by immigrants.
He also expressed admiration for foreign autocrats, including China's “brilliant” Xi Jinping, whom he praised for controlling “1.4 billion people with an iron fist.”
And he recalled the seconds after a gunman tried to kill him at a rally in Pennsylvania, when, bloodied and surrounded by Secret Service agents, he raised his fist and shouted to his supporters: “Fight back!”
The crowd in Grand Rapids chanted the same word more than once on Saturday, though some seemed to tire of the lengthy speech after 90 minutes and began leaving the stadium.
The rally represented a remarkable moment by any measure, with Trump back on stage exactly a week after the assassination attempt.
He appeared with a new, smaller, flesh-colored bandage over his right ear, which was grazed during the attack by a 20-year-old gunman on a rooftop who also killed a bystander.
Security was reportedly tight inside Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, amid questions about Secret Service failures at the Pennsylvania rally, though there were few visible signs of an increased police presence.
Biden's “big decision”
Meanwhile, Biden loyalists continued to defend the embattled president as calls for him to abandon his campaign grew louder.
The 81-year-old and his team have publicly remained steadfast in their stance to remain in the race, although some reports suggest discussions have begun within his inner circle about how exactly he might step aside.
There has been much speculation about who might replace him. As vice president, Harris seems best positioned to do so.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a prominent progressive who sought the party's presidential nomination in 2020, gave Harris a boost Saturday without turning her back on the president.
“Joe Biden is our candidate,” he said on MSNBC. “He has a very important decision to make.”
“But what gives me a lot of hope right now is that if President Biden decides to step back, we have Vice President Kamala Harris, who is ready to step forward, to unite the party, to take on Donald Trump and to win in November.”
But some Democrats fear such a late change could lead to chaos and doom the party at the polls.
Trump's team, meanwhile, is effervescent after an exceptional run of luck, from the failed assassination attempt to favorable court rulings to Biden's disastrous performance in last month's debate.
Saturday marked Trump's first campaign appearance with running mate JD Vance, a 39-year-old U.S. senator from Ohio who could help win key states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Vance energized the crowd and launched an attack on Harris.
“I served in the United States Marine Corps and started a company. What the hell have you done other than cash a paycheck?” he said of the former U.S. senator and California attorney general.
Trump supporters had begun lining up by the dozens in Grand Rapids on Friday, nearly a day before the rally was set to begin.
Edward Young, 64, attending his 81st Trump rally, wore a T-shirt featuring the now-iconic photo of Trump raising his fist immediately after being shot.
“They have made him a martyr and left him alive,” he said.
“He is now more powerful than ever.”
