Donald Trump appears at Republican Convention with bandaged ear after shooting

With a bandage strapped over one ear, Donald Trump made a triumphant return to the public eye on Monday evening at the Republican National Convention, receiving a rapturous welcome from thousands of supporters just two days after an attempt on his life.

The former president entered the convention arena in Milwaukee with a raised fist to the strains of a live performance of “God Bless the USA.”

He slowly walked through cheering crowds of delegates—some with tears in their eyes—before greeting key political allies and family members, including three of his children, though his wife Melania was absent.

At moments, the audience pumped their fists and chanted “Fight! Fight! Fight!” echoing Trump’s cry after a bullet grazed his ear at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.

The Republican nominee for November’s presidential contest is riding a wave of political momentum. The Democratic Party has been questioning 81-year-old Joe Biden’s candidacy following a poor debate performance last month, while Trump’s team has celebrated recent legal victories.

At the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, the former president listened to about an hour of speeches while sitting next to his running mate and vice-presidential candidate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, whose place on the ticket for November’s election was announced only hours earlier.

Trump did not make a speech but at times appeared moved by the crowd of thousands. He bowed his head in prayer and mouthed several times: “Thank you, everybody.”

Supporters and Republican delegates, some with tears in their eyes, had been waiting for hours for the former president’s appearance, which was not officially listed on the schedule for the opening day of the convention but was widely expected.

Eventful first day

Donald Trump’s appearance marked the highlight of an eventful first day of the Republican gathering in Wisconsin, one of six battleground states crucial to the election’s outcome.

Before the convention officially commenced, news broke that a federal judge had dismissed criminal charges against Trump related to the possession of over 300 classified documents at his Florida resort after his first term in office.

Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, ruled that special prosecutor Jack Smith’s appointment was unlawful and lacked the authority to bring a 37-count indictment against the former president.

This decision added to a series of victories for the Republican candidate, who now faces no imminent prospect of another criminal trial before Americans head to the polls on November 5.

Shortly after the convention’s opening, nearly 2,500 Republican delegates formally nominated Trump as their presidential candidate during a roll call vote.

Vance picked as running mate

Breaking with recent tradition, Trump held off announcing Mr. Vance as his vice-presidential pick until the convention, revealing his choice on his Truth Social network on Monday afternoon.

The Ohio senator and author of the best-selling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy” reportedly learned of his selection just minutes before the announcement.

He smiled with a touch of awe as he entered the crowd alongside his wife, Usha, engaging in conversations with the throngs of delegates surrounding them.

“Of the three [contenders] on the shortlist, I don’t think you could have done better,” said Greg Simpson, a Republican delegate who lives not far from Vance’s childhood home in Middletown, Ohio.

Democrats signaled their intent to highlight Mr. Vance’s stance on abortion and his affiliations with big tech throughout his tenure as a venture capitalist.

President Joe Biden, in a statement shared on X, criticized Mr. Vance for advocating for working-class Americans while allegedly planning to increase taxes on them and decrease taxes for the wealthy.

Biden referred to Vance as “a Trump clone” during remarks to reporters.

The president also participated in an interview with NBC News, expressing regret for his earlier statement urging to “put Trump in the bullseye” during a call with donors just days before his political opponent narrowly escaped an assassination attempt.

However, he attributed the heightened political rhetoric to his opponent, citing denials of the 2020 election results, promises to pardon the Capitol rioters of January 6, 2021, and jokes about a serious assault on the husband of Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi.

While Trump remains in Milwaukee preparing for his closing night convention speech on Thursday, Mr. Biden has resumed his election campaign by flying to Las Vegas for events after briefly halting rallies following the attack.

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