I took a bullet for democracy: Trump

July 21, 2024 11:57

Former United States president Donald Trump in his first campaign rally since surviving an assassination attempt has dismissed concerns raised by critics that he is a threat to democracy, telling a large crowd in Michigan that he "took a bullet for democracy."

In the rally in Michigan on Saturday, Trump, who is the Republican presidential nominee for the November 5 elections, was joined by his running mate J D Vance.

More than 12,000 people piled into the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids to see him and his running mate.

"They keep saying he's a threat to democracy. I'm saying, "What the hell did I do to democracy?' Last week I took a bullet for democracy," Trump said, referencing an often-used Democrat talking point.

"What did I do against democracy? Crazy," Trump, 78, said amidst applause from thousands of his supporters.

Trump's comments come one week since the former president survived an assassination attempt while campaigning in Pennsylvania. He was shot in the ear less than 10 minutes into his speech, prompting him to be escorted off stage. One attendee and the shooter died during the attack while two others were injured.

The former president also spoke about Project 2025, which his rivals and the opposition Democratic Party claim is an initiative that threatens democracy.

"I don't want to know anything about it. But what they do is misinformation and disinformation, he said, as he distanced himself from it.

Overseen by the conservative Heritage Foundation, the multi-pronged initiative includes a detailed blueprint for the next Republican president to usher in a sweeping overhaul of the executive branch.

"I shouldn't be here right now, but something very special happened," Trump, who wore a bandage on his ear, said at the rally.

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