Two days after surviving an apparent attempted assassination, former President Donald Trump appeared triumphantly at the Republican National Convention's opening night with a bandage over his right ear, the latest compelling scene in a presidential campaign already defined by dramatic turns, the AP reports. GOP delegates cheered wildly when Trump appeared onscreen backstage and then emerged in the arena, visibly emotional, as musician Lee Greenwood sang "God Bless the USA." That was hours after jubilant and emboldened delegates formally nominated the former president and welcomed Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his running mate. Trump, accompanied by a wall of Secret Service agents, did not address the hall—with his acceptance speech scheduled for Thursday—but smiled silently and occasionally waved as Greenwood sang.
He eventually joined Vance to listen to the night's remaining speeches, often with a subdued expression and muted reactions uncharacteristic for the unabashed showman. Saturday's shooting at a Pennsylvania rally, where Trump was injured and one man died, was not far from delegates' minds as they celebrated—a stark contrast to the anger and anxiety that had marked the previous few days. Some delegates chanted "fight, fight, fight"—the same words that Trump was seen shouting to the crowd as the Secret Service ushered him off the stage, his fist raised and face bloodied. He also was heard saying, "Let me get my shoes" as the agents led him offstage; in an interview with the New York Post Sunday, the former president explained why. "The agents hit me so hard that my shoes fell off, and my shoes are tight," he said. (More Trump rally shooting stories.)
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