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DESPITE ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT, TRUMP VOWS TO ATTEND TODAY’S REPUBLICAN CONVENTION
Former U.S. President and Republican Party’s presidential candidate, Donald Trump, on Saturday night, said he would attend the party’s nomination convention today in Milwaukee despite the assassination attempt on him.
Donald dispelled insinuations that he might not attend the event after the murder attempt on his life at a political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he sustained an injury in his ears and two fatalities were recorded .
The assailant, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, who was shot dead by security operatives, had attempted to kill the former President a few minutes after he mounted the podium to address party members and supporters.
FBI and other security agencies are still investigating the foiled assassination plot by Crooks, who was reported to have used a gun purchased by his father about six months ago.
The Guardian learnt that the Secret Service would have at least two security perimetres around the Fiserv Forum in downtown Milwaukee and the city itself would be beefed up with more security operatives drafted from all levels.
Public and political analysts mentioned that the convention would still host speeches throughout the week and the dozens of side events hosted by state Republican Parties and conservative organisations.
They observed further that it would even have more colours and glamour than it was planned before the Saturday shooting, saying the failed attempt had changed the narratives and fortunes of the party ahead of the polls.
Trump, who was declared safe by the Secret Service after stopping the murder attempt and whisked him out of the venue in Pennsylvania, would be formally nominated as the GOP’s presidential nominee on Thursday.
Allaying the fears of his teeming political supporters after the attack on Saturday, Trump said he would attend the convention alongside party officials, assuring the people the four-day event would be hitch-free.
Trump, on his social media page, yesterday morning, noted that he was still looking “forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin.”He said: “Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday, as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening. We will fear not, but instead, remain resilient in our faith and defiant in the face of wickedness.”
