Harriet Brewis
Jul 23, 2024
Trump says Biden 'draws flies' to campaign rallies
Fox News
Donald Trump has opened up about the immediate aftermath of his near-fatal shooting in an interview with Fox News.
The 78-year-old MAGA idol told host Jesse Watters about his instant response to the shocking attack which left him bloodied and another man dead.
Trump also revealed what he and his now-former rival Joe Biden discussed when the incumbent president called him up after the ordeal.
“[Biden] said, ‘You’re lucky you turned to the right,’” the Republican leader recalled of his conversation with the 81-year-old.
Indeed, Trump was mere millimetres away from death when he turned his head to glance up at a screen just as 20-year-old Thomas Crooks opened fire at a rally in Pennsylvania.
The 2024 presidential hopeful described his chat with the current US leader as a ”nice conversation.”
In the Fox News interview, which was recorded on Saturday but aired on Monday, Trump also admitted that he refused orders to be carried off the stage when a bullet grazed his ear.
“They wanted to put me on a stretcher,” the 78-year-old recounted. “They had a stretcher, and they wanted to put me on a stretcher. And I said, ‘I’m not going on a stretcher.’”
He also noted that Secret Service agents initially believed he’d been hit in the abdomen.
However, he said: “I just felt it was the ear,” whilst acknowledging that “there was a lot of blood” that may have alarmed those around him.
He added that his refusal to be stretchered away from the scene led to a “little argument” while the agents were “lying on top of me.”
“I said, ‘I’m telling you, I’m OK. I’m fine. I’m going to get up. I want to get up. I’m not going to be taken out on a stretcher,’” he said.
Addressing his condition now, a week-and-a-half after the failed assassination attempt, Trump said his right ear “good” and “getting much better”
“We’re getting down to the small bandages, but it was a nasty one,” he said of his injury.
Trump was flanked by his presidential running mate JD Vance for the Fox News interview(Fox News)
During his discussion with Watters, Trump also called for an investigation to be launched into whether the White House had been covering-up the reality of Biden’s physical and mental health.
“I think somebody has to look at it,” Trump fumed.
“Look, you had people that lied to the American public. And I tell you what, you ought to take a look at his doctors, because his doctors keep giving him this wonderful report.”
He continued: “I’m not a doctor, but I saw [Biden] the other day. He was unable to get up the stairs going into Air Force One.”
Referring to White House physician Dr Kevin O’Connor, he went on: “His doctor says – I know all about his doctor, by the way – his doctor says he’s in good health. He’s not in good health. I don’t think he’s in good health.”
It comes as unsubstantiated rumours continue to swirl around the president following his withdrawal from the 2024 US presidential race.
Furious theories surrounding the legitimacy of a signed letter announcing his withdrawal from the contest have continued to spread and, now, serious questions are being asked about the incumbent president’s health.
However, according to an official medical letter penned by O’Connor and released to the public on Monday, Biden’s coronavirus symptoms have “almost resolved completely” and he is due to return to the White House on Tuesday afternoon to continue his presidential duties.
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