Melania Trump says 'Let us reunite. Now.' after husband’s assassination attempt
Former First Lady Melania Trump has released a statement after her husband was the target of an assassination attempt Saturday during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
"When I watched that violent bullet strike my husband, Donald, I realized my life, and Barron’s life, were on the brink of devastating change," the statement reads.
FILE - First Lady Melania Trump attends an event to mark National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month in the East Room of the White House on September 3, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The former president was wounded but is "fine" after officials said a 20-year-old man from Pennsylvania opened fire.
In a social media post, Trump said he was "shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear." The former president was quickly whisked from the stage by Secret Service agents, his ear covered in blood.
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Melania said she was grateful to "the brave secret service agents and law enforcement officials who risked their own lives to protect my husband."
A prosecutor said the suspected gunman and at least one attendee are dead, and the Secret Service said two spectators were critically injured.
Melania offered her "sincerest sympathy" to the families affected.
"Your need to summon your inner strength for such a terrible reason saddens me," she said.
She then spoke on her husband’s "human side," which she said was "buried" below politics.
"A monster who recognized my husband as an inhuman political machine attempted to ring out Donald’s passion - his laughter, ingenuity, love of music, and inspiration.
"The core facets of my husband’s life - his human side - were buried below the political machine. Donald, the generous and caring man who I have been with through the best of times and the worst of times."
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She called for unity.
"Let us remember that when the time comes to look beyond the left and the right, beyond the red and the blue, we all come from families with the passion to fight for a better life together, while we are here, in this earthly realm.
"Dawn is here again. Let us reunite. Now," her statement continued.
Melania Trump RNC
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Melania Trump will attend the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee next week, making a rare political appearance.
But unlike in years past, she is not expected to address the gathering where her husband, former President Donald Trump, will formally accept the Republican nomination.
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While in the White House, Melania Trump sought to maintain her privacy and was often a reluctant presence on the campaign trail.
This election season, she's largely avoided appearing on the campaign altogether.
This story was reported from Detroit. The Associated Press contributed.