Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, for the first time, directly blamed the Biden administration for his being "forced to take a bullet for democracy."
"The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me, and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy," Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday.
"IT WAS MY GREAT HONOR TO DO SO!"
Trump's comments were posted moments after U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned Tuesday.
She was forced out after failing to provide immediate accountability for allowing a would-be assassin to hit the White House's political rival with a bullet shot to the head on the eve of the Republican National Convention.
Trump was due to accept the official GOP nomination just hours after the assassination attempt that the now-nominee is blaming on a failure of his political rivals to "protect" him amid the campaign.
It also comes after months of trials and prosecutorial attempts to convict him in multiple Democrat-controlled districts, including New York City, Washington, and Atlanta.
The "took a bullet for democracy" line has become a campaign rally call for Trump after the failed assassination attempt. It began in an off-script moment Saturday night as he returned to the stage nearly "one week ago today, almost to the hour, even to the minute" of dodging the bullet of a would-be assassin.
"Last week, I took a bullet for democracy," Trump told his Grand Rapids, Michigan, rally in a speech that aired live and in its entirety on Newsmax and the free online Newsmax2 streaming platform.
The remark mocked Democrats for "throwing out" the results of the Democrat primary to wage a political coup over Biden, who had been campaigning on the mantra of it being Trump who was a "threat to democracy."
Biden had called Trump an existential threat to America.
Then a heavily armed 20-year-old, would-be assassin attended Trump's Pennsylvania rally, scoped out his shot — as a recognized individual of "suspicion" for nearly an hour prior, according to the now-resigned Cheatle — climbed a roof left unattended outside of the Secret Service "secure perimeter" at a distance of an estimated 145 yards, and was permitted to fire multiple shots at Trump — one scoring a head shot.
The shooter was killed in seconds by a countersniper, but video clearly showed his high-powered weapon was trained on the targeted individual of "suspicion" long before the assassin was permitted to fire the shot that "whizzed" into the right ear of Trump, who had just slightly turned from what would have been a likely fatal bullet to the head.
One assassin bullet struck and killed a rallygoer and online Biden critic Corey Comperatore, 50, behind Trump in the rally crowd, while two other victims between the shooter and Trump were also hit.
Trump said those other two victims are expecting a recovery from their wounds.