Shooting makes Trump ‘indestructible’ in eyes of supporters

The assassination attempt against former President Trump is uniting Republicans as never before, just as the party convenes this week in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention.

In the hours following the shooting, Trump struck a grateful yet commanding tone, calling for unity. Meanwhile, his political allies have rallied around their party’s standard-bearer, widely sharing what many have described as an “iconic” image of him holding his fist in the air with blood on his face. 

The moment hit as Democrats have experienced two weeks of turmoil, with calls for President Biden’s replacement on the ticket at a fever pitch as Trump’s rally began.

“Trump is indestructible,” said New Hampshire GOP Chair Chris Ager. “It doesn’t matter who the Democrats put up. They can wring their hands about President Biden all they want. Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter who they put up.” 

“The Democrats are essentially a sideshow,” he added. 

While Republicans were considerably more unified than Democrats going into their nominating convention, there were still some questions about where the party’s more moderate flank would turn. Despite suspending her GOP primary bid earlier this year, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley was able to garner substantial support in Republican primaries in critical swing states, sometimes reaching into the 20 percent range. 

“It has and will continue to be unifying to his base, including that crucial not-consider-Trump Haley voting and donor segment,” said one Republican strategist. “It is premature to fully calculate the political impact of an assassination attempt beyond that, but make no mistake, Donald Trump was already handily beating Joe Biden, and the tragic events in Pennsylvania will likely only accelerate that momentum.”

Ager, who comes from a state where Haley lost by 11 points to Trump, said Never Trump voters reached out to him following the shooting asking how they could help in the effort. 

Republican donors are echoing this sentiment and are predicting a groundswell in fundraising following the attempt on Trump’s life. 

“We’re going to see absolutely wild fundraising numbers,” said Trump donor Dan Eberhart. 

Trump already has seen explosive fundraising numbers this year, most notably after he was convicted in his New York City hush money case. The former president’s campaign brought in a whopping $35 million following the verdict in May. 

“If being charged brought Republicans back to Trump, him being shot is going to bring everyone back [to] Trump,” Eberhart said. “I think this is going to be a landslide.” 

The picture of a bloody-faced Trump holding his fist in the air has become a rallying point for the Republican universe in less than 24 hours. The House and Senate Republican campaign arms quickly posted the picture on the social platform X following the shooting, along with other major Republican figures. 

“Nearly every Republican now sees Trump as the toughest S.O.B. to ever run for president,” said Republican strategist Ford O’Connell.

“It’s not a stretch to think that constantly calling Trump ‘an existential threat to Democracy’ contributed to this tragedy,” O’Connell added, jabbing at Democratic messaging over the threat they argue a second Trump term poses to democracy. 

Republicans say the image encapsulates what they say is Trump’s strength. 

“You just take it all together and say there have been so many things thrown at this man. So many things that a normal-strength person would not be able to stand up to, and he has come through all of them,” Ager said. 

Trump has often said that anyone who attacks him is by extension attacking his supporters, which Republicans say makes Saturday’s shooting that much more personal. 

“They’re acting in a sense of if it can happen to him, what’s stopping anyone from doing it to us?” said one Republican operative. 

Both Republicans and Democrats have come out to condemn the shooting and have called for a de-escalation in political rhetoric. 

“We’ve got to turn the rhetoric down. We’ve got to turn the temperature down in this country,” Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told NBC’s “Today” on Sunday. “We need leaders of all parties, on both sides, to call that out and make sure that happens so that we can go forward and maintain our free society that we all are blessed to have.”

Trump has also sought to strike a unifying tone in the hours following the shooting, calling on the nation to “stand united” in a Truth Social post on Sunday morning. 

“In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win,” Trump wrote, adding that he was looking forward to addressing the country from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week. 

The Trump campaign and convention officials confirmed Saturday evening that Trump would still be traveling to the convention this week. Trump ally Corey Lewandowski, who is assisting the campaign in the convention and delegate process, called Trump’s response following the shooting “heroic.” 

“A man who was just shot stood up and he said ‘fight’ and was released from the hospital just hours later,” Lewandowski told The Hill. “[He] walked off the plane last night in Bedminster, N.J., and is prepared to accept his nomination and fight for America.” 

Lewandowski was speaking from Boston Logan International Airport en route to Milwaukee. A number of people were present at the gate in Trump shirts and MAGA apparel. Most of the chatter among them was unsurprisingly about Saturday, and the supporters appeared to be fired up. 

Ager told The Hill that he and other Republicans pushed Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley to keep with the planned schedule despite the shooting. 

“We were encouraging him not to change the schedule, not to do anything, and he confirmed very strongly from the top on down that the show will go on,” Ager said. “We’ll get business done, and this is not going to slow us down for a minute.”

“People are already getting their throats ready for Thursday night so when Trump takes the stage, they can scream as loud as they can,” he said. 

Cate Martel contributed