The Republican National Convention (RNC) official sessions began On Monday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Franklin Graham has accepted an invitation to give the benediction on Thursday when the convention ends.
The RNC comes at a tumultuous time for the nation, as former president and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt on Saturday at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Minutes into Trump’s speech, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several rounds at Trump from an elevated position, grazing the candidate’s right ear, killing one audience member and critically wounding two others before he was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper. Authorities reportedly found explosives in Crooks’ car, as well as bomb-making materials in his home.
“I thank God that former President [Trump] is alive,” Franklin posted on Facebook on Saturday night. “Our prayers are also with the others injured at the rally today and the family of the individual who was killed.”
Trump was promptly surrounded by Secret Service agents. As agents escorted him offstage, he raised his fist in the air in front of the watching crowd. Blood could be seen on the right side of his face from the bullet grazing his ear.
“Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday, “as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening. We will FEAR NOT, but instead remain resilient in our Faith and Defiant in the face of Wickedness.
“Our love goes out to the other victims and their families. We pray for the recovery of those who were wounded, and hold in our hearts the memory of the citizen who was so horribly killed. … I truly love our Country, and love you all, and look forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson said that the House of Representatives will conduct a full investigation of Saturday’s events, including a hearing with Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, as well as officials from the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI.
The Trump Campaign released a statement Saturday evening confirming the presidential candidate was doing well after the day’s events and expressing gratitude to the first-responders and law enforcement for their fast action. Trump traveled to Milwaukee on Sunday for the RNC.
The citizen who was killed was identified as 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief and father of two daughters. Comperatore reportedly went to church every Sunday.
Allyson Comperatore, the victim’s daughter, posted on Facebook, “He was a man of God, loved Jesus fiercely, and also looked after our church and our members as family … he shielded my body from the bullet that came at us. … He truly loved us enough to take a real bullet for us.”
Former First Lady Melania Trump released a statement on X on Sunday calling for unity across the nation “Let us not forget that differing opinions, policy, and political games are inferior to love,” she wrote. “Our personal, structural, and life commitment—until death—is at serious risk. Political concepts are simple when compared to us, human beings. … And let is 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.”
Politicians across the nation are calling for the temperature of political rhetoric to be brought down in the face of the weekend’s violence.
