“It is only by the grace of Almighty God that I stand before you on this stage,” the president said, visibly emotional as the delegates surrounding him in the auditorium. Trump told the delegates he should not be on stage today, to which they responded with drowned out shouts of “Yes you are.”

Trump said he was “having fun” speaking on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania, when, six minutes into the rally, a gunshot was heard from beyond the crowd and Trump crouched behind the podium, clutching his neck. Secret Service agents rushed to cover him, but seconds later, Trump, blood streaming from his face, was back on his feet and pumping his fist in the air.

“Fight,” he told his fans.

As Trump recounted his story, the crowd chanted “fight!” as they have done all week.

After giving thanks to God for saving his life, President Trump held a moment of silence for former Fire Chief Cory Comperatore, who was shot and killed while attending a rally. He pulled out Comperatore's firefighter jacket and helmet, kissed his uniform, and saluted the crowd.

Sadly, this shooter took the life of one of our fellow Americans, Corey Comperatore, and severely wounded two other great warriors, David Duch and James Copenhaver.

— President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/6W04vbXSKA

— Team Trump (text TRUMP to 88022) (@TeamTrump) July 19, 2024

The former president said more than $6 million had been raised for Comperatore's family since his death and that he himself planned to donate $1 million.

From there, President Trump used the tragedy to underscore the political moment, calling for national unity, not just party unity.

“There is no doubt about our resolve, and our purpose remains unchanged: to establish a government that serves the American people better than ever before,” Trump declared. “Our vision is true and our ideas are pure, so no matter what obstacles we may face, nothing will stop us from pursuing that vision. We will not falter, we will not succumb or back down, and I will never stop fighting for you, your families, and our great country.”

The president avoided mentioning President Joe Biden by name during his speech, mentioning the 81-year-old Biden's name just once before vowing never to do so again.

“I'm never going to use that name again,” Trump said.

Instead, Trump compared his own record to Biden's without naming his administration, stacking statistics for comparison and touting his border policies, economy and crime rates in a lengthy speech. Before the former president took the stage, a video was played of former President Ronald Reagan reading his famous line, “Are you happier today than you were four years ago?”, a theme that continued throughout Trump's speech.

The president also outlined actions his administration plans to take in his speech, adding that if re-elected he would launch “the largest deportation operation in history.”

While Trump touted his accomplishments, he also stressed to the crowd the importance of Americans coming together to make America “great again.” At another point, he stepped away from policy talk to recount how his life was saved during the rally.

At one point, Trump said that a graph he was looking at on stage Saturday helped him turn his head so that a bullet would hit his ear instead of his skull. As images of the graphs were projected around him, Trump reflected anew on the blessing of being onstage.

“The last time I put out this chart, I didn't have a chance to look at it properly.”

-President Donald Trump addressed the assassination attempt on his life in Pennsylvania at the Republican National Convention.

Straight gangster. Donald Trump pic.twitter.com/C64wmffiYS

— Derrick Van Orden (@derrickvanorden) July 19, 2024

“Just a few days ago, our journey together nearly came to an end,” Trump said, “and yet here we are, gathered here tonight speaking about the future, the promise and total renewal of what we hold so dear: America. We live in a world of miracles.”