Five days after an assassin’s bullet struck him in the ear during a campaign event, former President Donald Trump has maintained a highly visible presence at the GOP national convention this week. However, not much information has been revealed regarding his recovery or any residual health problems.
Every night of this week’s Republican National Convention, Trump has worn a large white bandage over his right ear. The Trump campaign has not officially updated the former president’s status, and officials have not responded to requests for comment.
Rather, the little information that the public has received comes from close allies and family members who have seen Trump since the incident last Saturday.
The former president’s son, Eric Trump, revealed that his father’s wound, which he called “a nice flesh wound,” was not sutured, The Hill reported.
Eric Trump’s wife Lara, who also serves as co-chair of the Republican National Committee, informed the network on Thursday morning that her father-in-law will likely wear a bandage over his injured ear “until it’s fully healed up.” Her father-in-law is not currently taking any medication for the injury.
The day following Trump’s gunshot, according to Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), the White House physician under both the Obama and Trump administrations, he inspected the president.
“The bullet took a little bit off the top of his ear in an area that, just by nature, bleeds like crazy,” Jackson told the New York Times. “The dressing’s bulked up a bit because you need a bit of absorbent. You don’t want to be walking around with bloody gauze on his ear.”
“He [Trump] realizes how close he came to that,” Jackson said. “And he realizes that if he hadn’t started making that movement where he turned his head, pulled back a little bit, and looked up, if he hadn’t done it at the exact millisecond that he started, that bullet would have entered his head.” The Texas Republican added: “I think there was divine intervention there.”
Jackson suggested that “divine intervention” may have played a part in preventing more severe injury to Trump during the assassination attempt. The former president himself has remarked that his life was saved because he turned his head at “the exact right time” to refer to a chart during his speech at the rally.
Trump has himself provided some commentary on the shooting. Hours after it took place, he posted on Truth Social that he 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,” he wrote.
Republicans, who have praised Trump’s bravery in the immediate aftermath of the assassination attempt when he stood up and pumped his fist to the crowd while surrounded by Secret Service officials, have been energized by the incident.
The convention goers have occasionally started chanting “fight!” in homage to what Trump said to the crowd while blood was streaming across his face during his rally in Pennsylvania. To honor Trump, a few delegates covered their own ears with improvised paper bandages.
Regarding his health, Trump has remained largely silent since leaving the White House. While he is running for reelection, his team has not made many details about his physical condition public.
It made public a letter from the former president’s personal physician in November of last year, which characterized him as being in “excellent health” but offered little details about his most recent examination.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
