A bullet that could have decided the entire election

The assassination attempt on Donald Trump
The Scots may have decided the election

Emelie Svensson

This is a commenting text. Analysis and positions are the writer's.

Updated 13.40 | Published 09.51

onald Trump raised his fist to the crowd before being escorted from the podium. Photo: Gene J. Puskar / AP

Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt by inches.

America's political situation has now reached the boiling point - and the shots change everything in the election campaign.

Donald Trump's bloody face. A victory fist in the air. Secret service that closes tightly around him. American flag fluttering in the background.

The iconic photo has stuck with Americans forever – and likely decided the entire election.

I have followed Donald Trump from the beginning of his political career, and the image is the very image of why his voters love him.
My first close experience with Trump was during the 2016 election campaign, the first time he ran for president. He had just cast his vote and left the school in Manhattan when he noticed me climbing a lamppost to get a better angle. Trump raised his fist at me in a victory gesture as he drove by.

He, the reality star, was counted out by most, but won against all odds.

In the next election cycle, I attended his campaign meetings over and over again, just like one of the ones he was shot at. Trump has an ability to captivate his fans like few other politicians, turning his rallies into rock concerts. In the tents around, t-shirts are sold with Trump's face on a muscular boxer's body, and he is portrayed as the action hero Rambo with a machine gun.

That election ended with me attending his speech on January 6, 2021, where he urged his constituents to “fight like hell” or they wouldn't have a country left. Then some of the voters stormed the congress, in a bloody and violent attack.

After that, Donald Trump was calculated again. He refused to accept the election results. Many Republicans in Congress distanced themselves, and few believed he would be able to set foot in Washington again.

In February, I visited Trump's Mar-a-Lago in Florida, and spoke briefly with the former president at his golf club. There, the eyes of his closest admirers shone in the face of the man they consider sacrificing their personal comfort - and fighting for them.

I have also followed Trump's trials in the courts in New York, where he similarly used prosecutions and lawsuits to his advantage, by appearing as a defiant fighter against the "elite".

Few imagined we could reach the same climax in an election year as the storming of Congress—but 2024 looks set to shatter all previous records.

Trials, a conviction against Trump, total meltdown for Joe Biden on the debate stage.
And now an assassination attempt.

What makes Trump unique is his way of turning adversity into success.

After the bullet hit Trump's ear, he turned to the crowd and shouted "fight, fight, fight". That presence of mind, and showmanship, as if he were standing in the ring at a wrestling match, personifies Trump, and explains his strong appeal among voters.

The attack came just two days before the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin, which begins Monday, and where Trump will be confirmed as his party's presidential nominee.

The MAGA world unite around him. The Scot reinforces his image as a political martyr, and I think it's taking on seismic proportions.

His allies have already portrayed him as the ultimate survivor, having fought through criminal charges for the past two years. Trump is "invincible," Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, wrote on social media.

A new, dark chapter has opened in American history. The bullet may have decided the election, already four months before election day.

Too many Americans don't want a frail old man stumbling over his words - they want a street fighter.

One with blood on his face and raising his fist against all odds.