Former President Trump is set to return to Butler, Pa., for what is likely to be a highly charged rally, nearly three months after a bullet grazed his ear at the same site in an attempted assassination.
The former president told NewsNation this week he felt he had an “obligation” to return to the site of the shooting, which killed one rallygoer.
“We never finished what we were supposed to do. And I said that I said that day when I was shot, I said, we’re coming back. We’re going to come back,” Trump said.
The Butler shooting upended the presidential campaign and, along with a second alleged assassination attempt on Trump last month, has thrust the Secret Service into the political spotlight.
Trump and his campaign have indicated they will turn Saturday’s rally into a triumphant return for the former president, as well as a way to honor those who were killed, injured or involved in response efforts during the July 13 event.
Family members of Corey Comperatore, who was killed at the July rally, will attend Saturday, and Trump intends to recognize them and honor Comperatore. Jim Sweetland and Ed Shear, who were at the July rally and provided first aid, will also be recognized, as will David Dutch, who was injured in the gunfire.
Other expected attendees include Elon Musk, the owner of X and Tesla who has endorsed Trump, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), who provided medical care for Trump after he was wounded, and several local sheriffs and officials.
“What you’re going to see in Butler, Pa., tomorrow is the kind of strength and leadership that we are desperate for back in that White House. I think it’s going to be an emotional rally,” said Lara Trump, who told Fox News that she and her husband, Eric Trump, will be in attendance.
The former president has joked that he may open the rally by telling the crowd, “As I was saying.”
The Butler shooting, which took place just minutes into Trump’s July 13 rally, sparked calls from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to lower the temperature, and it came at a time when President Biden was facing pressure from his party to step aside as the Democratic nominee.
But in the roughly three months since, the campaign has returned to a more intense, often mean tone, with Trump in particular hurling insults at his opponents and blaming Democratic rhetoric for the attempts on his life.
While the former president said during his speech at the Republican convention that he would only recount the Butler shooting once because it was “too painful,” he has regularly spoken about the incident during subsequent rallies.
He talks frequently about the chart that showed rising immigration during the Biden administration that was displayed at the Butler rally as a chart that saved his life, explaining how it caused him to turn his head and keep the bullet from hitting him more squarely.
The July 13 shooting sparked widespread criticism of the Secret Service and led to the resignation of former director Kimberly Cheatle. A Senate report issued in late September found the agency had multiple opportunities to prevent the shooting and cited a breakdown in communication and coordination between federal, state and local law enforcement.
The spotlight on the Secret Service has only grown more intense after a second alleged assassination attempt against Trump at his Florida golf course. In that instance, the gunman was engaged by Secret Service agents before he could get any shots off.
Since the July shooting, Trump’s rallies have been marked by tightened security measures. He has stood behind panes of bulletproof glass at campaign events over the past two months, and the Secret Service has said Trump is receiving “heightened” protection.
Beyond the fanfare, the rally carries political significance. Pennsylvania is shaping up to be one of the most critical battlegrounds in November’s presidential election, and both campaigns have spent significant time and resources there.
A Decision Desk HQ/The Hill average of polls out of Pennsylvania shows Harris ahead of Trump by less than 1 percentage point.