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July 18 (UPI) -- Donald Trump accepted the GOP nomination for president Thursday during the final night of the Republican National Convention, marking his first public speech since a failed assassination attempt over the weekend. "We rise together, or we fall a part," he said, looking across the cheering crowd of supporters who spontaneously broke in a chant of "Trump, Trump Trump!"
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"Tonight, with faith and devotion, I proudly accept your nomination for president of the United States," he said.
Amid heated debate, escalating campaign rhetoric and mudslinging, Trump has called for unity since the shooting Saturday in rural Pennsylvania and reiterated that Thursday night at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
"I am running to be president for all of America not half of America because there is no victory in winning for half of America," he said.
Before talking about politics, Trump launched into an explanation of what he experienced during the Saturday attack, when 20-year old Thomas Matthew Crooks, a registered Pennsylvania Republican, had crawled onto the roof of a nearby building, toting an assault rifle, and fired off a barrage of shots in the attempt on Trump's life.
"You will never hear it from me a second time because it's too painful to tell," Trump said of the events that unfolded at the campaign rally.
Crooks was killed by snipers within seconds of shooting at the former president, who has been sporting a large, white bandage on his right ear, which he said had been pierced by a bullet in the shooting.
"I'm not supposed to be here tonight," Trump said to the crowd, who cheered in response. "Thank you," he said. "But I'm not. And I'll tell you, I stand before you in this arena only the grace of almighty God."
Trump said efforts have raised $6.3 million for the family of Corey Comperatore, a former volunteer fire chief, who was shot while trying to protect his wife and two daughters at the rally when the shooting occurred.
In shifting to politics and policy, Trump blamed the Biden administration for turning "incredible success into unparalleled failure."
Trump criticized President Joe Biden's border policy and said Americans are being squeezed out of the labor force by "illegal aliens," and said "they're taking the jobs from our Black population, our Hispanic population."
He said inflation has wiped out the life savings of U.S. citizens and forced the middle class into despair depression. Trump said less that four years ago, "we were a great nation, and we will soon be a great nation again."
Trump said with proper leadership, the problems the country is enduring will be fixed and fixed quickly. He asked voters to support him this year, whether they had done so in the past or not.
"I will bring back the American dream," Trump said. "That's what we're going to do. You don't ever hear about the American Dream anymore. With great humility, I am asking you to be excited about the future of our country."
Prior to Trump's speech, former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan came onstage amid a cheering, raucous crowd, acknowledging a "vibe" that made him feel like he was back in his wrestling days, preparing to win "another world championship."
"What I found out was I was in a room full of real Americans, brother," Hogan shouted. "And at the end of the day, with our leader up there, my hero, that gladiator, we're gonna bring America back together, one real American at a time, brother!"
Looking every bit the showman he has always been, Hogan, sporting long dyed blonde hair and mustache, a red stocking hat and sunglasses on his head, Hogan pulled off his blue sport coat to reveal a blue tank top emblazoned with an American flag, as he yelled in protest about Saturday's attempted assassination.
"When they took a shot at my hero and they tried to kill the next president of the United States, enough was enough!" Hogan shouted, tearing off the tank top to reveal yet another tank top, and waving his arms.
In the moments before his father was to accept the GOP nomination, Eric Trump, the former president's second eldest son and executive vice president of the Trump Organization, reflected on how close he came to losing his dad in the shooting Saturday, looking at his father while speaking.
"Dad, five days ago, Laura, Luke, Carolina and I held our breath as we saw blood pour across your face," he said, referring to his wife and their two children. "By the grace of God, divine intervention and your guardian angels above, you survived," he continued amid cheers of "We love Trump" from the crowd.
Trump -- who awaiting sentencing after being found guilty of doctoring business records to keep an alleged affair from the voting public in 2016 -- is the first convicted felon in U.S. history to be nominated for the presidency by a major political party.
Fellow Republicans laid out their support in speeches leading up to Trump's acceptance speech Thursday night.
Former conservative talk show host and strident Trump supporter Tucker Carlson told the crowd that the former president is the funniest man he knows and said his policies will focus on America first.
He criticized the current administration for failing to solve the opioid crisis and securing the border as well as for continuing to send weapons to Ukraine for its fight for survival against an invading Russia.
"A middle finger in the face of every American," Carlson said.
Florida delegate and Dixie County GOP Chair Javnote Teague, a man with a pronounced southern drawl and sporting a cowboy hat and a blue sport coat, said he supports Trump because he has had the opportunity to compare administration's under Biden and Trump, and asked himself which one was better for his family-owned timber business.
"Rarely do you even see a presidential candidate where you can compare two track records," Teague said. "Here you can."
"When we lived up underneath the Trump administration, we had a little bit more prosperity," Teague said of his timber business, adding fuel costs and other expenses associated with running his business are higher now than they were four years ago.
Speakers earlier in the night focused on Trump's record during his time as president, with Linda McMahaon, former chair of the Small Business Administration, describing the New York real estate mogul as "a job creator."
"Donald Trump is not only a fighter, ladies and gentlemen, he is a good man," she said.
Trump accepted his party's nomination against a backdrop of heightened political rhetoric and ramped-up religious fervor in the public arena. He is facing a president who arguably has been weakened by COVID-19 this week and is facing diminishing support among donors and members of his own party.
During his convention speech Thursday, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was critical of Biden while voicing support for his former boss. He said Trump will be president different than the current one in many ways.
"A president who will not check his watch while he is honoring his fallen brothers and sisters," Pompeo said, referring to a moment when Biden glanced at his wrist during the dignified transfer of the bodies of American soldiers killed in the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"It was indecent," Pompeo continued.
Pompeo blamed the "very weakness that we saw in Afghanistan" for Russian President Vladimir Putin's "butchery in Ukraine" as he criticized the Biden's administration handling of American's exit from the military conflict in the Middle Eastern country, despite it being the Trump's administration that in February 2020 signed a formal agreement with the Taliban to withdrawal all U.S. troops from the country.
Pompeo was also critical of Biden's handling of the current war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza and wrongly stated that Biden has refused to talk about hostages being held in Gaza "by the Iranian regime."
Pompeo contrasted Biden's record with what he said happened during the Trump administration, which he said took hostages home when Americans were wrongly held.
Pompeo cited his trip to North Korea to bring home three American pastors.
"We brought them home," Pompeo said. "We brought them home along with dozens of other hostages and we did so without paying one single penny to the terrorists. "
Pompeo went to say the U.S.-Mexico border is a "welcome mat for Islamist terrorists, drug dealers, Chinese spies and violent criminals."
Amid a few cackles of laughter in the highly revved up crowd, Pompeo said the world "looks to the U.S." as what a free society should look like but that under the Biden administration, it has shown weakness.
He made a glancing reference to Biden's age and physical stature, criticized the president for injecting "woke" ideology into the military and censoring free speech.
Pompeo also said Biden has weaponized the U.S. justice system against political opponents, and claimed the Biden administration is appeasing terrorists and coddling undocumented immigrants, and added that Biden is not fit for the job of being president.
"The truth that we all know and is so dangerous to our nation," he said. "The truth is that Joe Biden can't handle that 3 a.m. phone call. Indeed. He won't take a phone call after about 4 p.m."
Pompeo was followed by other speakers in the run up to the Trump acceptance speech.
