2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump made his first public appearance without ear bandages at the Turning Point Action (TPUSA) Believers Summit in West Palm Beach, Florida on Friday night.
Trump's wound was discovered 13 days after he was grazed by a bullet in his ear at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he took the stage to speak about religious freedom.
President Trump spoke at a TPUSA event in Florida two weeks after an assassin attempted to kill him.
The bandages have come off and the wound on his ear is healing.
God bless this man. pic.twitter.com/kwdeEeA5lj
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) July 27, 2024
“I think you can see that I'm doing well. In fact, I just took the last of the bandages off my ear,” Trump told the crowd, which erupted in cheers and applause. “I just took them off. I took them off for this group!”
🚨 Donald Trump speaks without ear bandages for the first time since assassination attempt
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 27, 2024
Trump was first seen with a bandaged ear at the Republican National Convention (RNC) on July 15. As Trump entered the venue, the crowd chanted “Fight! Fight! Fight!”, the same chant they had uttered when an assassin's bullet struck Trump's ear on July 13.
“I took a bullet for democracy,” Trump said at a TPUSA event on Friday.
“I Took a Bullet for Democracy” — President Trump at TPUSA Faith Believers Summit pic.twitter.com/FAfMELsknt
— RSBN 🇺🇸 (@RSBNetwork) July 27, 2024
In his speech, Trump said he survived “through the power of prayer and the grace of Almighty God.” The Republican candidate previously New York Post “I was supposed to be dead,” he said in his first interview since being shot.
“It is only through the power of prayer and the grace of Almighty God that I stand before you this evening.” — President Trump at the TPUSA Faith Believers Summit pic.twitter.com/R6GdR8yGcM
— RSBN 🇺🇸 (@RSBNetwork) July 27, 2024
Trump also criticized Kamala Harris on Friday, who is the presumptive Democratic nominee for 2024. President Joe Biden endorsed Harris shortly after she first announced on social media that she was not seeking reelection. (Related article: 'I don't know how to speak': Trump rally attendees talk about Kamala Harris)
“Three weeks ago she was a failure,” Trump said, “a failed vice president in a failed administration.”
Since then, several prominent Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have endorsed Harris.
The Obamas finally endorsed Harris early Friday morning, five days after former President Barack Obama refrained from endorsing her in a lengthy statement following Biden's withdrawal. Obama initially expressed “confidence” that “the leaders of our party can create a process that produces a high-quality nominee.”
