'As I was saying...' Trump's theatrical return to Butler, PA

Donald Trump has returned to the site where he narrowly escaped assassination in July, pushing the emotional buttons of his supporters and suggesting that his political opponents "maybe even tried to kill me" to stop him regaining the White House.

- David Smith

The Republican presidential nominee mounted an unabashedly sentimental spectacle in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. He was joined by the billionaire Elon Musk, who made the baseless claim that if Trump's supporters fail to turn out, "this will be the last election".

Their joint appearance capped hours of programming seemingly intended to mythologise the 13 July shooting for the Trump base exactly one month before the presidential election.

The rally was held, with heightened security, in the grounds where Trump was grazed in the right ear and one rallygoer Corey Comperatore, a volunteer firefighter - was killed when a gunman opened fire. The would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper.

A photo of Trump standing with blood streaked across his face as he raised his fist and shouted "Fight!" became the image of his campaign.

Yet Joe Biden's decision just a week later to step aside and endorse his vice-president, Kamala Harris, altered the trajectory of the race.

On Saturday Trump became the first former president to return to the scene of his attempted assassination. His campaign sought to recapture the aura of their candidate as hero and martyr.

As he walked out on stage, a video juxtaposed an image of George Washington crossing the Delaware River with the photo of Trump with fist raised. "This man cannot be stopped. This man cannot be defeated," a voice boomed.

"As I was saying..." Trump said as he appeared, gesturing towards an immigration chart that he was looking at when the gunfire began 12 weeks earlier. The crowd roared enthusiastically, holding signs reading: "Fight! Fight! Fight!"