Trump returns to rally crowd in Butler, Pa., site of July assassination attempt

The July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life was a recurring theme at a Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pa. on Saturday.

Trump returned to speak at the Butler Farm Show grounds in the small Pennsylvania city — the site where, nearly three months ago, a gunman’s bullets grazed the Republican presidential nominee’s ear, as well as killed one rally attendee and injured two others.

“Exactly 12 weeks ago this evening on this very ground, a cold-blooded assassin aimed to silence me and to silence the greatest movement, MAGA, in the history of our country,” Trump said in one of his many references to his near-death experience. “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. He did not shake our unyielding resolve to save America from evils of poverty, hatred and destruction.”

Speaking from behind transparent screens owing to heightened security, Trump honored Corey Comperatore — the man who was fatally shot during Trump’s rally in July — with a moment of silence. Bells tolled and tenor Christopher Macchio’s sang Franz Schubert’s “Ave Maria,” a piece often performed at funerals. Trump also expressed thanks to the Secret Service team and medical professionals who came to his aid.

Crowds waited for hours in the Pennsylvania sun to hear Trump speak. Their cries of “Fight! Fight! Fight!” punctuated the action on stage.

Other speakers at the event also referenced the July 13 shooting.

Eric Trump appeared to blame his father’s political opponents for the assassination attempt: “They tried to kill him,” Trump’s son said. “And it’s because the Democratic Party, they can’t do anything right.”

Elon Musk focused on Trump’s bravery: “The true test of someone’s character is how they behave under fire,” the billionaire entrepreneur said. “We had one president who couldn’t climb a flight of stairs and another who was fist pumping after getting shot.”

Beyond the references to the July shooting, Trump’s speech focused on many of his usual talking points, including putting an end to illegal immigration, the importance of fossil fuels to the U.S. economy (“We are going to drill, baby, drill!”) and his plan to turn the country into a “manufacturing superpower again.”

He also twice repeated his plan “to keep men out of women’s sports” on the grounds of it being “so demeaning to women.”