Trump’s extraordinary 7 days on the campaign trail — from a ‘disastrous’ debate to second assassination attempt

A presidential debate, palling around with Laura Loomer, taking a swipe at Taylor Swift and the second assassination attempt: it has been a dramatic seven days on the campaign trail for Trump

It has been an extraordinary seven days for Donald Trump since he faced off against Kamala Harris in last week’s presidential debate.

Just one week ago, the candidates locked horns in the tense 90-minute debate which saw Trump angrily peddle the baseless story that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, as Harris shook her head in disbelief.

In the week since the debate, Trump has been spotted palling around with conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, taken a swipe at Taylor Swift for endorsing Harris, and faced the fallout from the Springfield rumors.

The 2024 presidential campaign took yet another dramatic turn on Sunday, when a second assassination attempt was made on Trump’s life at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Trump was unharmed.

Here, we look back at a remarkable week on the campaign trail

‘Disastrous’ debate

Longtime GOP pollster Frank Luntz, a frequent Trump critic, said the former president’s performance at the debate last Tuesday came “very close” to being the worst he’s ever seen.

Trump took a battering from a confident Vice President Kamala Harris when it came to abortion rights and the January 6 riots. She audibly laughed over his outburst: “They’re eating the pets,” a reference to false claims about Haitian immigrants stealing and eating cats and dogs in Springfield.

Harris, in turn, did not land any “knock out punches,” pundits said, but she had a better night than Trump.

Trump claimed he won the debate against Harris last week (AP)

In a sign that it was not a good night for the Republican presidential nominee, he made a surprise appearance on the spin room floor.

The narrative Trump and his team were pushing soon became clear: The biased ABC moderators were to blame for conducting fact-checks during the debate. Harris’s campaign immediately called for a second debate, which Trump has now ruled out.

Even a day after the assassination attempt on his life, Trump continued to complain about the “highly partisan ABC debate.”

Fallout from Springfield, Ohio

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine hit out at the baseless rumours surrounding Springfield and the Haitian community (CBS News /YouTube)

The ramifications of the baseless rumor in Springfield have been felt most by those living there. The city has since been besieged with bomb threats, prompting officials to call in state troopers to be stationed around the school district.

“Any political leader that takes the national stage and has the national spotlight needs to understand the gravity of the words they have for cities like ours,” Republican Mayor Rob Rue told Politico. “Springfield, Ohio is caught up in a political vortex, and it is a bit out of control.”

And Ohio governor Mike DeWine also furiously waded in to defend the Haitian community. “This is a piece of garbage that is simply not true. There’s no evidence of this at all,” he told ABC’s This Week. “Discussion about Haitians eating dogs is just not helpful. And, again, these people are here legally. They’re here legally, and they want to work, and they are, in fact, working.”

Laura Loomer concerns

Right-wing conspiracy theorist Loomer, 31, was pictured stepping off Trump’s plane when he touched down in Philadelphia last week for the debate. Since then, Loomer has become engulfed in yet more controversy, causing prominent Republicans to publicly urge Trump to distance himself from her.

She even joined him at the 9/11 memorial event in New York, despite peddling the conspiracy theory the attacks were an “inside job”.

Laura Loomer stepping off Trump’s plane in Philadelphia last week (AP)

Later that week, following Loomer’s racist reference to the vice president’s Indian heritage, Trump merely responded at a press conference: “I don’t control Laura. Laura has to say what she wants. She’s a free spirit.”

His running mate, JD Vance, responded for the first time to Loomer’s racist remark in an interview on Sunday with Meet the Press. “I don’t like those comments,” Vance said, but added that he doesn’t “look at the internet for every single thing to get offended by”.

A juvenile response to Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift endorsed Harris almost as soon as the debate was over. Her Instagram call for voter registration drove more than 400,000 visitors to the vote.gov website in under 24 hours.

Trump responded to the snub on Sunday — the same day as the assassination attempt — lashing out in all caps, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” on his Truth Social platform.

Although Trump’s petty four-word statement went viral, he inadvertently caused many others to show their support and ‘I love Taylor Swift’ was soon trending, with numerous celebrities getting involved.

Second assassination attempt in two months

Trump was bundled away by Secret Service agents on the golf course on Sunday after another assassination attempt on his life — the second in two months.

Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was identified by federal officials as the suspect who was allegedly armed with a powerful rifle and aimed it through the bushes at Trump National Golf Club where Trump was playing a round of golf. Routh was around 300 to 500 yards away from him at the time.

Ryan Routh was identified by federal officials as the suspect who was allegedly armed on Trump’s golf course (via REUTERS)

Harris condemned the attempted attack on Trump. “I am deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today,” she said in a statement. “As we gather the facts, I will be clear: I condemn political violence. We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more to violence.”

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden said the Secret Service “needs more help”.

But Trump and his campaign have already started to point fingers. Referring to Routh, Trump said: “He believed the rhetoric of Biden and Harris, and he acted on it. Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at, when I am the one who is going to save the country, and they are the ones that are destroying the country — both from the inside and out.”

After an extraordinary week and with November’s election edging closer, what is unclear is how the assassination attempt will play out with voters and how much it will impact the race for the White House.