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Trump Will Return To Butler On Oct. 5, Same Location Of First Assassination Attempt

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OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.


The Trump campaign declared on Wednesday that the former president will hold a rally on October 5 in Butler, Pennsylvania, the scene of his first assassination attempt this year.

“President Donald J. Trump will return to Butler, Pennsylvania, to hold a rally on the very same ground where he came within a quarter of an inch of losing his life less than three months ago,” the campaign said in a news release.

According to the campaign, Trump will pay tribute to firefighter Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old father who was shot and killed during an attempted assassination, upon his return to Butler. In the past, Trump had declared that he would hold a “big and beautiful” event in honor of Comperatore and the other victims of the massacre.

“The attempted assassination shook up the presidential campaign on the eve of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Trump seized on the moment to call for unity. The former president was also the target of a second assassination attempt last week when he was golfing at his Florida club. The former president was quickly rushed away from the golf course after a Secret Service agent fired at the suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, after spotting him in the bushes at the perimeter of the club. Routh was later arrested and subsequently indicted Tuesday on an attempted assassination charge. He also faces two gun-related charges,” CNN reported.

“Trump’s upcoming rally in Butler, located north of Pittsburgh in a key battleground state, will come less than three months after the July 13 attempt on the former president’s life. Trump was minutes into a speech when a gunman fired eight shots at the stage, bloodying the former president’s right ear. Secret Service agents killed the gunman at the scene,” CNN added.

Comperatore, a father of two children, was shot as he jumped on his family to shield them from the gunfire, according to Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

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The Butler rally on October 5 will also celebrate local law police and first responders, the Trump team announced on Wednesday.

“President Trump will also recognize the two other Americans who were wounded by the shooter, David Dutch and James Copenhaver,” the release said. “He will express his deep gratitude to law enforcement and first responders, and thank the entire community for their outpouring of love and support in the wake of the attack.”

As the Secret Service hurried him off stage, Trump’s response to the shooting—standing and pumping his right fist and mouthing “Fight” to the Butler crowd—became a catchphrase at the Republican convention and in his subsequent campaign appearances.

Trump paid tribute to Comperatore during his speech at the Milwaukee convention by approaching an onstage exhibit of the former fire chief’s safety gear and kissing his helmet.

Former First Lady Melania Trump talked candidly about the moments she discovered her husband, former President Donald Trump, had been the target of two assassination attempts.

In an interview with “Fox & Friends,” Melania Trump discussed the incidents that rocked her life in detail. The first assassination attempt happened in Butler, Pennsylvania, at a rally in mid-July. Melania Trump described the bizarre experience of witnessing it happen a few minutes after it did, rather than in real-time.

“I ran to the TV and I [rewound] it and I watched it,” she revealed.

She added, “When you see him on the floor, and you don’t know what really happened.”

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The former First Lady referred to the two attempted assassinations as “miracles.”

On September 15, when he was playing golf at his West Palm Beach club, Trump was the target of his second attempted murder. Melania Trump found out about the incident—again via television—while she was in New York.

“As soon as I saw it on television, I called again, and he was OK because Secret Service were great,” she said. “The guys that they were, the team, they were fantastic. And I think both of the events, they were really miracles. If you really think about it, July 13 was a miracle. How… like that much, and he could, you know, he could not be with us.”

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