On Sunday morning and into the afternoon, diehard supporters of Donald Trump gathered at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, after he was injured at a campaign rally event in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Ryan Hart from New Jersey said he felt sick to his stomach when he heard, “depressed and sick”.
“I think it’s just going to mean more supporters for Trump and more money [for the campaign]. You can see that happening already. An act of violence has no place in any [campaign]. When I was down at a rally before in Wildwood [New Jersey] it was very peaceful. My YouTube videos from that got over 90,000 views,” he said.
Jacqueline Price, from Jersey City, said she knew it was going to happen.
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“They tried to bankrupt him. They tried to lock him up. And now they tried to kill him. God saved him yesterday ... I think the impact will be very positive. Anyone who wasn’t going to vote for him, will now,” she said.
Rachel Castillo from New Jersey was watching it live.
“It was a very surreal moment. I gasped. I was in shock ... I screamed and then I cried. I saw the blood on his ear, but when I saw him stand up, for me that was an indication that everything was going to be all right. That shows you the kind of man that he is.
“He’s a brave man. He doesn’t have to be doing this. He could be with his family, at his age, enjoying his money, enjoying vacations, playing golf, being with his grandchildren. Who needs this? He’s known all over the world. He’s already been president.
“He can go into any social circle that he wants. The fact that he still remains here, it’s for us, we the people. Us, the little people. He has our back, and we’re going to have his. I think it will absolutely guarantee his win,” she said.
Mary Muldoon from Woodlawn, The Bronx said her phone went “crazy” after the attack.
“I’m a Trump supporter. I’m born and raised in the Bronx, I still live in the Bronx. I live in Woodlawn, which used to be a predominantly Irish neighbourhood ... It’s disgraceful what happened. I was at the rally in the Bronx, and they had so much protection that you had to go through a scanner before you even got in. What happened here? ... [Trump’s reaction] shows me that he’s tough. He’s got the fighting Irish in him, I don’t care what anyone says,” she said.
SK Kennard from the Upper East Side in New York said: “What has happened, has happened multiple times throughout American history. We’ve had presidents actually assassinated before, unfortunately ... There’s a long history of that of that type of violence in America. It’s abhorrent, it’s absolutely horrible, it’s upsetting that we can’t just get along better, that’s how I see it.
“I think it’s going to galvanise his support ... I think his support is just going to coalesce ... Here in America, unlike in Ireland, we have the second amendment, the right to bear arms. I don’t want to push it in that direction, but the government works for us: we the people ... We have the second amendment to protect also against tyranny. It’s in the constitution. It’s in the Bill of Rights for that specific purpose.
“Obviously the guns are to protect ourselves personally, but it’s also in there for, you know, a counter-effect to tyranny. I don’t advocate violence by any means, but I hope it doesn’t go in that direction.”
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