‘I took a bullet for democracy,’ Trump tells first rally since shooting

Donald Trump, holding his first campaign rally since surviving an assassination attempt, dismisses concerns that he is a threat to democracy, triumphantly telling a cheering crowd: “Last week I took a bullet for democracy.”

“I’m not an extremist at all,” he continues at the rally in swing state of Michigan, dismissing his reported links to Project 2025, a radical shadow manifesto led by figures close to him that has been characterized by opponents as an authoritarian, right-wing wish list.

And he mocked the rival Democratic Party, roiled by unprecedented pressure for President Joe Biden to abandon the White House race amid concerns over his age and fitness to serve, if reelected, until 2029.

“They have no idea who their candidate is… This guy goes and he gets the votes, and now they want to take it away. That’s democracy,” Trump tells the 12,000-strong crowd of passionate supporters.

Even as he veers into his typical, rambling campaign speech, the rally represents a moment remarkable by any measure, with Trump back on stage exactly one week since a gunman tried to kill him.