Despite being advised by the U.S. Secret Service not to do so earlier this week, former President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he will continue holding outdoor rallies.
After the assassination attempt on July 13, there were reports suggesting that the Secret Service advised the former president to refrain from holding outdoor campaign rallies. Despite this advice, Trump has pledged to continue holding outdoor rallies and mentioned on Truth Social that the Secret Service will significantly increase its security detail for future events.
“I WILL CONTINUE TO DO OUTDOOR RALLIES, AND SECRET SERVICE HAS AGREED TO SUBSTANTIALLY STEP UP THEIR OPERATION,” Trump said in the all caps post. “THEY ARE VERY CAPABLE OF DOING SO. NO ONE CAN EVER BE ALLOWED TO STOP OR IMPEDE FREE SPEECH OR GATHERING!!!”
“Ensuring the safety and security of our protectees is our highest priority,” Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the Secret Service, told the Daily Caller.
The shooter, Thomas Crooks, 20, managed to fire at Trump from a height located just 130 yards away from the stage. He was seen by onlookers and flagged by the Secret Service almost an hour prior to the Republican candidate’s commencement of the event, but for some reason, Trump was allowed to take the stage.
Trump on Friday responded to a statement from the FBI walking back Director Christopher Wray’s remarks during a House hearing this week that the former president’s ear wound during this month’s unsuccessful assassination attempt was likely from glass shrapnel and not a bullet.
The bureau did not actually issue an apology to Trump following FBI Director Christopher Wray’s casting of doubts regarding whether the former president was shot by a bullet or shrapnel. But in its statement, the FBI admitted that Trump was shot by a bullet, marking a significant reversal from Wray’s testimony before Congress. Trump took that as an “apology.”
During a speech at Turning Point USA’s Believers’ Summit in West Palm Beach on Friday, Trump talked about how an immigration chart he had looked at potentially “saved” his life, and mentioned that the FBI had raised doubts about whether he had actually been shot by a bullet.
“Did you see the FBI today apologized,” Trump continued referring to the FBI’s statement. “They said, ‘Well, it might’ve been a bullet, but it might’ve been glass.’ So, really, where did the glass come from? ‘Or, it might’ve been shrapnel,’ where did the shrapnel come from?”
“They then said there was a bullet,” Trump added. “It just never ends with these people. They raid Mar-a-Lago, they do things so bad, so bad. Our country is so sick. But they apologized. We accept their apology.”
