After the latest scare on Sunday, where the Secret Service opened fire on a man with an AK-47 outside of Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach while former President Donald J. Trump was on the course, I believe we all need pause to appreciate the immense courage Trump displays daily on the campaign trail.
This is what President Trump put out immediately after the incident: “There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL! Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me.”
Legend. That is the only word that comes to mind.
Days before this, my wife and I were watching yet another outdoor rally attended by former President Donald J. Trump when she turned to me and said: “I still get so nervous for him. I can’t believe he does these anymore.”
She was speaking to the fact that even after the horrific attempted assassination of him at an outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13th – just two short months ago – President Trump not only still attends outdoor rallies but acts as if nothing had ever happened as he smiles and interacts with the crowds.
As I watched him on the stage with my wife at the latest rally, I had to admit that I felt some of the same nervousness and fear she had just vocalized. How many people could honestly do what President Trump was now doing? How many people would be able to exhibit such courage knowing there were more than likely still others out there – Iranian-controlled or liberal hate-filled rhetoric inspired – seeking to take the next shot?
Had any of us experienced the millisecond of an assassin’s bullet hitting our ear and coming within mere millimeters of ripping into our brain, I suspect most would still be in a fetal position clutching a teddy bear while speaking with our therapist via a smartphone. But not Trump. Not even close.
He has brushed aside that terrifying moment as if it never happened. You want to talk about a real “Profile in Courage.” You look at it every time Trump takes the stage at one of these rallies.
While the liberal -- Kamala Harris supporting mainstream media -- has disgracefully and unprofessionally done all in its power to ignore the attempted assassination – while questions about government cover-ups rightfully swirl in Congress and beyond – that attempted murder of former President Donald J. Trump was, and is, a threat to our Democracy and must never be forgotten or…left uninvestigated.
I will never forget it for a very personal reason. Just three days before the assassination attempt, President Trump was kind enough to invite me to his golf course in Jupiter, Florida, to talk golf, life, and a bit of politics.
What the voters instantly and indelibly learned during the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, is that Trump’s natural instincts are to fight in his defense and the defense of our nation. Again, how many of us, after getting shot by a high-powered rifle meant to take our life, could do what Trump did those seconds afterward when he jumped up from the ground and screamed: “Fight, fight, fight” to the crowd? He truly is a man apart regarding both his fighter instinct and his bravery under fire.
But, three days before those bullets rang out, I saw an equally impressive side of the former President. One that the public does not always see and one that the far-left media does all in its power to make sure they never see. That being his continual kindness and empathy for others.
After he greeted me at his country club, we sat and talked for a bit. As we did, I watched him interact with staff by name time and again, asking them with a smile, “How they were doing?”
Soon after that, President Trump invited me to the driving range to hit golf balls with him…and for the record…he is an exceptional golfer who was crushing his drives. As we hit various shots, I witnessed the same kindness and empathy played out as he spoke and joked with staff and those already on the range. He went out of his way to put everyone at ease.
After we hit golf balls on the range, the President played the first nine holes with friends. Upon his return, I got to sit with him again at the clubhouse for more conversation. Almost instantly – with no one around to impress – the President offered me lunch and a soft drink. He truly wanted to make sure I was fed and comfortable. It was – and is – simply his true nature.
As I drove home from that remarkable meeting, my first thought was how shameful it was that the liberal media went out of its way to prevent the American people from seeing this side of him. My second thought was remembering that President Trump needed none of this. None.
As has been well documented, as a highly successful multi-billionaire with a worldwide business empire, he could have lived out the rest of his life in peace and comfort. Except it was he…who concluded that he could not.
Seeing our nation in massive and almost irreversible decline brought about by failed liberal and entrenched elite policies. Businessman Trump asked himself the same two questions our Founding Fathers asked themselves 250 years ago: “If not me, who? If not now, when?”
And because he did, the left, the Democrats, the Deep State, and the liberal media went after him with a vengeance, spending every waking hour trying to destroy his life, imprison him, or…worse. You want to talk about true courage and patriotism. It was on display long before that assassin’s bullet grazed his head in Butler, PA.
When Trump declared for the presidency in June of 2015, he got an almost immediate taste of the unhinged partisan venom coming his way. By 2020, he knew the Democrats, the left, and their handmaidens in the media would cross any line to destroy him. Come 2023 and 2024, he knew they were actively trying to imprison him via “lawfare” and false charges pushed by corrupt officials.
And yet…he still ran.
Again, how many of us would truly have the courage and sense of patriotism to run for any office if we knew that the entrenched establishment elites with the power to destroy and imprison us were coming our way? Almost none.
Two years ago, I authored a book titled The 56—Liberty Lessons from those who risked all to sign the Declaration of Independence. The sole purpose of that book was to protect our Founding Fathers from cancellation by the left.
If you want to see the living embodiment of those American heroes' courage, vision, and patriotism today, look at President Trump at one of his rallies. He is a once-in-a-century leader.
He is a man who literally displays the courage of his convictions as he fights the corrupt to save our nation. He needed none of this pain and heartache.
Pause for a moment to appreciate what you see with your own eyes. History will record it as “inspiring” and, most likely…“nation-saving.”
Douglas MacKinnon is a former White House and Pentagon official and author of The 56—Liberty Lessons from those who risked all to sign the Declaration of Independence. Follow him @DougOfSkye.