Former first lady of the US Melania Trump has spoken out after an assassination attempt was made on Donald Trump’s life.
Yesterday (13 July) at around 6:15pm, shots were fired at a rally held by former president of the US Donald Trump, taking place in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Trump himself was hit by a bullet in his right ear, two other attendees were critically injured and one spectator was killed and Trump’s wife Melania has since spoken out about the incident, branding the shooter a ‘monster’.
Melania shared a statement to her Twitter account earlier today (14 July).
The statement reads: “I am thinking of you, now, my fellow Americans. We have always been a unique union. America, the fabric of our gentle nation is tattered, but our courage and common sense must ascend and bring us back together.
“When I watched that violent bullet strike my husband, Donald, I realised my life, and Barron’s life, were on the brink of a devastating change. I am grateful to the brave secret service agents and law enforcement officials who risked their own lives to protect my husband.”
Melania then goes on to address the families of the ‘innocent victims who are now suffering from this heinous act’.
She ‘humbly’ offered them her ‘sincerest sympathy’ and said it ‘saddens’ her that they ‘need to summon [their] inner strength for such a terrible reason’.
Melania branded the shooter who is allegedly responsible for killing one person – since identified by police as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks – a ‘monster’.
“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,” she continued. “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.”
Melania called on Americans to not ‘forget that differing opinions, policy, and political games are inferior to love’ and that ‘our personal, structural, and life commitment – until death – is at serious risk’ branding political concepts as ‘simple’ when ‘compared’ to ‘human beings’.
She resolved: “We are all humans, and fundamentally, instinctively, we want to help one another. American politics are only one vehicle that can uplift our communities. Love, compassion, kindness and empathy are necessities.
“And let us remember that when the time comes to look beyond the left and the right, beyond the red and blue, we all come from families with the passion to fight for a better life together, while we are here, in this earthly realm.”
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact The Compassionate Friends on (877) 969-0010.