Former First Lady Melania Trump has issued a statement after her husband was wounded in an assassination attempt that killed at least one rally-goer and injured several others. “I am thinking of you, now, my fellow Americans,” the former first lady wrote in a press release.
“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 as one. When I watched that violent bullet strike my husband, Donald, I realized my life, and Barron’s life, were on the brink of devastating change,” the statement continued. “I am grateful to the brave secret service agents and law enforcement officials who risked their own lives to protect my husband. To the families of the innocent victims who are now suffering from this heinous act, I humbly offer my sincerest sympathy. Your need to summon your inner strength for such a terrible reason saddens me.”
She went on to describe the shooter, identified as Pennsylvania native Thomas Matthew Crooks, as a “monster who recognized my husband as an inhuman political machine.” She added: “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. Let us not forget that differing opinions, policy, and political games are inferior to love. Our personal, structural, and life commitment – until death – is at serious risk.”
In her concluding remarks, Melania emphatically called for unity and an end to the hyperpolarization that has gripped the nation for more than a decade. “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,” she wrote. “And let us 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.”
She added: “Dawn is here again. Let us reunite. Now. This morning, ascend above the hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence. We all want a world where respect is paramount, family is first, and love transcends. We can realize this world again. Each of us must demand to get it back. We must insist that respect fills the cornerstone of our relationships, again. I am thinking of you, my fellow Americans. The winds of change have arrived. For those of you who cry in support, I thank you. I commend those of you who have reached out beyond the political divide – thank you for remembering that every single politician is a man or a woman with a loving family.”
Former President Trump was released from a Pittsburgh-area hospital shortly after 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday. He was treated for an injury to his ear after a bullet narrowly missed his head when he luckily turned to the side just before Crooks opened fire with at least 8-10 shots.