Former President Donald Trump expressed his belief that it was God who protected him from assassination at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Several Republican officials echoed this sentiment.
In a post on the social media platform he founded, Truth Social, Trump wrote on Sunday, “God stopped the unimaginable from happening. We shall not be afraid, but stand firm in our faith, unwavering in the face of evil.”
He then expressed his love for the families of other shooting victims, including a deceased former firefighter and two other injured attendees. “At this moment, more than ever, it is crucial for us to stand united, to show the true character of Americans, to remain strong and resolute, not allowing evil to prevail,” Trump wrote in his post.
Some Republican officials also shared similar sentiments. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican senator likely to be Trump’s running mate in 2024, wrote on social media X on Saturday, “God protected President Trump,” along with a photo of the former president with blood on his face, raising a fist towards the sky.
Florida Republican Congressman Carlos Antonio Giménez agreed with this view and told Fox News that it was by “the grace of God” that the former president was not seriously injured or killed. Congressman Cory Mills firmly stated that it was “divine intervention” and God’s “protective hand” that thwarted the assassination attempt.
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday that it was God who “protected President Trump yesterday” and expressed his hope to NBC News that politicians would tone down their rhetoric following the failed assassination attempt.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, “A miracle happened yesterday, and I believe God’s hand was involved.” The Republican leader noted that he himself had been shot during a congressional baseball team event in 2017. “Just one centimeter difference, and we’d be having a very different conversation right now,” Scalise said.
Footage from the scene showed Trump speaking at the rally, and just before being hit near his right ear, he slightly turned his head. Some Republicans, including Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, pointed out that this slight turn of Trump’s head may have saved his life and suggested that it was a case of divine intervention.
Patrick wrote on social media, “In just one split-second, you turned your head slightly, or the prompter blocked you, and you received the mercy and grace of the loving and divine God, spared from harm.”