A view from the press riser of the chaos surrounding what authorities are calling an assassination attempt against Donald Trump.
The gunshots were high-pitched pops, slight and hollow in the open air.
Donald Trump, the former president set to accept the Republican nomination in five days, was less than 10 minutes into his speech here to a crowd of tens of thousands. A miles-long line of cars crawled for hours to pass through metal detectors and bag inspections, just like any Trump event, until these green fairgrounds became a sea of red hats.
Trump was almost an hour late, and his supporters waited impatiently under the blazing sun and thumping music. In the middle of the crowd, opposite the stage, a platform of TV cameras pointed at the podium, with reporters huddled underneath for shade.
Finally Trump walked out, as usual, to chants of “USA” and marveled: “This is a big crowd. This is a big, big, beautiful crowd.” A bright red MAGA cap shaded his eyes, and his white shirt was open-collared in the heat as he leaned his arms on the lectern.
He launched into his stump speech but quickly got bored with the prepared script. He offered to invite the Republican Senate candidate, Dave McCormick, to speak, but McCormick wasn’t ready.
“You don’t mind if I go off teleprompter, do you?” Trump teased. “Because these teleprompters are so damn boring.” He asked to show “that chart that I love so much,” showing border crossings across his and Joe Biden’s presidencies, and acted amazed that his producers obliged, projecting it onto the giant screens to either side. “Wow, you guys are getting better with time.”
He was pointing to one of the screens, narrating the increase in immigration since he left office in 2021.
