Trump claims assassination attempt tied to political rivalry

During a meeting with his supporters, Donald Trump once again brought up the issue of the assassination attempt, suggesting that his rivals from the Democratic Party wanted to take his life. Elon Musk also spoke at the rally.

The assassination attempt on Trump occurred on July 13. The perpetrator, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired shots from a distance of approximately 135 metres during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

"Over the past eight years, those who want to stop us from achieving this future have slandered me, impeached me, indicted me, tried to throw me off the ballot, and who knows, maybe even tried to kill me," Trump said on Saturday during a rally organized at the site of the attack from three months ago.

"Tonight, I return to Butler in the aftermath of tragedy and heartache to deliver a simple message to the people of Pennsylvania and to the people of America: Our movement to make America great again stands stronger, prouder, more united, more determined and nearer to victory than ever before," he declared.

Unlike the July rally, on Saturday, the location where Trump spoke was separated from the public by bulletproof glass. Exactly at 6:11 PM local time, the Republican candidate called for a moment of silence. It was at this time in July that shots were fired at him. In the attack, two people were injured, and one person died. The piece "Ave Maria" played in the background in honour of the fallen firefighter.

The rally on Saturday also featured billionaire Elon Musk. The owner of platform X stated that the current elections are "the most important election of our lifetime" because "the other side wants to take away your freedom of speech."

The billionaire encouraged participation in voting. "If they don’t [do this], this will be the last election. That’s my prediction. Nothing’s more important," he declared.