Trump draws thousands to Harrisburg rally only weeks after Western Pa. shooting: ‘I’m thrilled to be back’

Former President Donald Trump returned to Pennsylvania on Wednesday for a campaign rally in Harrisburg, unleashing a stream of attacks on the presumptive Democratic candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris.

It marked the first time since the July 13 attempt on his life during a rally at a fairgrounds in Butler County.

Speaking at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg to an overflow crowd of more than 8,000 chanting “U-S-A” as he took the stage, Trump immediately referenced the shooting that left one man dead and wounded three, including Trump, who suffered a grazed ear.

“I’m thrilled to be back in this beautiful Commonwealth. My first return since our rally in Butler,” said Trump, vowing to return to the scene of the assassination attempt. “By all accounts, I should not be with you.”

Trump, who started 90 minutes late, launched into attacks on Harris, calling her a “lunatic,” a “failed” vice president and a “puppet candidate” of wealthy special interests.

“Kamala is being given a personality makeover,” he said. “A few weeks ago, she was considered the worst vice president in history and all of a sudden she’s the new Margaret Thatcher,” referencing the former British prime minister.

Trump went on to assail Harris for being a “defund the police radical.” Multiple fact checks call that accusation misleading, as Harris has said she supported “reimagining” public safety but never advocated closing police departments.

On the issues surrounding the southern border, Trump said Harris wants “open borders,” and was responsible for allowing a flood of undocumented immigrants as President Joe Biden’s “border czar.” Fact checks show Harris was charged with examining the root causes of migration. She was not in charge of enforcing the border security.

“On the one hand you have a radical left puppet candidate who is fake, fake, fake, and on the other hand you have a president who will fight, fight, fight for America,” he said.

The stakes are high in Pennsylvania, a key political battleground state with 19 electoral votes at stake. Biden beat Trump in 2020 in Pennsylvania by just over 80,000 votes. The latest polls indicate a tight race unfolding in Pennsylvania with Trump up in some and Harris in others, but virtually all landing within the margin of error.

Some supporters camped out at the Farm Show complex the night before the rally, and a carnival atmosphere unfolded Wednesday with cosplay Trumpers dressed as deep sea divers and border walls, wearing Trump masks with bandaged ears and vendors selling an array of T-shirts, including variations of one with Trump’s image across an American flag with the slogan, “I’m Voting for the Convicted Felon.”

Several members of Congress including U.S. Reps. Scott Perry, Lloyd Smucker and Glenn Thompson, along with GOP Senate candidate Dave McCormick, were among the warm-up speakers.