Donald Trump says he’s rewritten the speech he will deliver at this week’s Republican National Convention in the aftermath of Saturday’s assassination attempt.
On Sunday, the former president and presumed GOP nominee talked to The Washington Examiner’s Salena Zito, who was present at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the day before, where gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks shot at Trump (and killed a rallygoer) before being shot dead by the Secret Service. Trump’s ear was “pierced” but he was otherwise OK, flying to Wisconsin on Sunday in advance of the convention.
In his first media interview since being shot, Trump told The Examiner that he had originally planned to talk about President Joe Biden‘s policies in his speech, but he has now changed course.
“The speech I was going to give on Thursday was going to be a humdinger,” Trump said. “Had this not happened, this would’ve been one of the most incredible speeches. Honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.”
He added: “This is a chance to bring the whole country, even the whole world, together. The speech will be a lot different, a lot different than it would’ve been two days ago.”
Trump was shot at Saturday’s rally when he looked to his right. In his interview, he noted that he nearly always faces the crowd head-on and rarely looks away, a move that he implied likely saved his life.
“That reality is just setting in,” he said, adding: “Had I not done that in that moment, well, we would not be talking today, would we?”
Trump also was asked about the moment where he raised his hand in a fist and could be seen saying “fight” to the crowd. He said he wanted to reassure attendees that he was fine and that “America goes on.”
“The energy coming from the people there in that moment — they just stood there; it’s hard to describe what that felt like, but I knew the world was looking,” he said. “I knew that history would judge this, and I knew I had to let them know we are OK.”
Zito appeared on CNN on Sunday night to talk about the interview with Trump, saying he’d called to check on her and see if she was OK as he was boarding his plane from Bedminster, New Jersey, to Milwaukee. Zito then asked Trump if she could ask him some questions for a story, and he obliged.
CNN also reported Sunday that Trump underwent a precautionary CT scan after the shooting that came back clear.
Also on Sunday, President Joe Biden addressed the country twice, calling for unity and condemning the shooting.
“I want to speak to you tonight about the need for us to lower the temperature in our politics, and to remember, while we may disagree, we are not enemies,” he said. “We’re neighbors, we’re friends, co-workers, citizens. And most importantly, we are fellow Americans. We must stand together.”
