Texas Republicans Hail Trump As Hero For Surviving Shooting Ahead Of RNC

After former President Donald Trump was shot in the ear, Texas Republicans said they see him as a hero and expect a more unified party at this week’s Republican National Convention.

On Saturday, a 20-year-old man shot Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa. The shooter wounded Trump in the ear, but killed a supporter. In the aftermath, Republicans see Trump as a hero for taking a bullet and shouting “fight” with his fist in the air and blood coming out of his ear

“He’s going to come into the convention hall as a conquering hero,” Dr. Robin Armstrong, Texas’ Republican national committeeman told the Dallas Morning News.“The fact that he survived this, I think it’s going to be a rallying point.”

Trump’s injuries were minor, and he said he would travel to the Republican National Committee in Milwaukee on Monday, where extra security is expected. Texas politicians and delegates said they’re excited about the convention.

“We are going to be more united, more energized, more committed to reelecting Donald Trump than anybody could have imagined 24 hours ago,” said state Rep. Brian Harrison from Midlothian. Harrison previously worked as chief of staff in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the Trump administration.

Trump’s assassination attempt was infuriating to Harrison. 

“I was incredibly proud to get on a plane this morning to travel to Wisconsin to play a role in nominating a guy that people have tried to throw in jail; they’ve tried to bankrupt; they’ve tried to boot him off ballots; and now assassinate. I want that person to be the president of the United States of America,” he told The News.

Sen. Ted Cruz said the attack was caused by hate rhetoric against Trump; he also called for de-escalation of the situation.

Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted that Trump was “blessed” to have survived the attack, though he received heavy criticism for implying that all the children killed in the Uvalde shooting were not blessed.

President Joe Biden, on the other hand, condemned political violence in a national address on Sunday.

“An assassination attempt is contrary to everything we stand for as a nation,” he said. “Everything. It’s not who we are as a nation. It’s not America, and we cannot allow this to happen. Unity is the most elusive goal of all, but nothing is [more] important than that right now.”