Trump returns to site of failed assassination

Donald Trump supporters gathered Saturday for another rally where an assassin's bullet narrowly missed killing him in July, upending a White House race still clouded by the threat of political violence.

Trump's defiant and much-hyped return to Butler, Pennsylvania, comes exactly one month before the November 5 presidential election, the outcome of which President Joe Biden suggested on Friday might not be peaceful.

Security was noticeably tighter this time, with sniper squads positioned on several surrounding buildings, and a surveillance drone deployed overhead.

"There's a lot going on that's unnerving," said Heather Hughes, 43, who had traveled from New Castle in must-win Pennsylvania.

"Do I think he's safe? No, I think there's going to be another attempt. But I think he's going to make it through."

Trump was riding a clear poll lead after crushing Biden in a TV debate in late June, and entered the Republican convention in Milwaukee as a political martyr.

Pictures of Trump with a blood-streaked face, pumping his fist and shouting "fight, fight, fight" as he was bundled away by Secret Service agents, became defining images of the campaign.

On Saturday, many Trump supporters wore shirts emblazoned with assassination iconography, with some sporting ear coverings recalling the bandage the former president wore after the shooting.

The rally appears aimed at recovering that momentum as a bruising campaign enters its final stretch. Trump is bringing along running mate J.D. Vance, and iconoclastic billionaire Elon Musk said on his X platform that he too would be addressing the crowd.

Much has changed since Trump's last visit.

Barely a week after the failed assassination bid, the presidential race was turned on its head when Biden dropped out and was replaced as the Democratic nominee by Vice President Kamala Harris.