It delights me to know Trump is safe, no place for political violence in America – Biden

Following a shooting at his Pennsylvania event, President Joe Biden expressed his gratitude that former President Donald Trump is safe.

There is no place in America for this sort of brutality, according to Biden, who made this statement from Rehoboth Beach around two hours after the massacre.

“It’s ill,” the president continued. Biden expressed his hope to talk to Trump shortly.

Biden used the occasion to urge unity in the nation as the suspected shooting threatened to exacerbate political discourse in the months leading up to November.

“We cannot allow for this to be happening. We cannot be like this,” he said.

The shooting – which is being investigated as an attempted assassination, according to law enforcement officials – left Trump bleeding from the ear. A spokesperson said the former president was doing “fine” and being treated at a medical facility. The suspected shooter and at least one rally attendee were killed, Butler County, Pennsylvania, District Attorney Richard Goldinger told CNN.

Biden was attending mass at St. Edmond’s Catholic Church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, when the shooting occurred. The shooting marks a massive turning point not only for the country, but for Biden’s role as president: he entered the church as a president fighting for his political future and exited in a familiar role – the nation’s counsellor in chief now tasked with bringing the United States together during a serious crisis.

The shooting at Trump’s rally is a shocking turn in what has been a highly charged political season for both of the major-party candidates. Biden has pitched the race as the decision between the continuation and possible destruction of democracy in the United States. That rhetoric will now be closely examined in the aftermath of the apparent attack, including comments that the president made in a call with donors on July 8, during which he said, “It’s time to put Trump in the bullseye,” according to a summary of the call provided by his campaign.

Biden said in a statement earlier Saturday that he was praying for Trump: “Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.”

Inside Biden campaign’s response
Moments after the incident, Biden campaign officials huddled and decided to pull down all TV ads and limit their public campaign messaging.

Bidens campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez and chair Jen O’Malley Dillon sent a note to campaign staff Saturday evening in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, urging staff to “refrain from issuing any comments on social media or in public.”

“We’re also asking everyone to pause any proactive campaign communication across all platforms and in all circumstances until we know more,” they wrote in a note, which was obtained by CNN.

Chávez Rodríguez and O’Malley Dillon began the note by saying that as more information comes in, they are “grateful to the members of law enforcement who immediately jumped into action and wishing Trump a quick and full recovery.”