As the presidential campaign entered its final month, former President Trump returned to Butler, Pennsylvania, where a would-be assassin nearly killed him on July 13. The crowd numbered in the tens of thousands, mostly working- and middle-class families.
Many in the crowd wept, remembering Corey Comperatore, who gave his life shielding his family from the assassin’s bullet. Renowned opera singer Christopher Macchio sang “Ave Maria” and “How Great Thou Art.” Faith, family, and freedom dominated the day.
Meanwhile, governmental relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Helene were slow. Self-reliant citizens of Appalachia sprang into action, neighbors helping neighbors, while bureaucrats in Washington dallied. Outraged victims of the storm pointed to millions of US tax dollars going for migrant relief and Ukraine, while Biden-Harris offered $750 for hurting Americans.
The hardest hit counties in North Carolina, Georgia, and other states are Trump country. Trump rushed to the devastation and raised $5 million for hurting communities. He told reporters, “I am not thinking about voters right now, I am thinking about lives.” Trump and Franklin Graham of Samaritan’s Purse prayed for the storm victims and urged the feds to act more quickly.
The presidential campaign increasingly seems to be a clash of two worldviews. Trump-Vance represent Middle America, while Harris-Walz champion urban, secular, pro-abortion elites. Analysts claim they sense movement among American voters. The perception is growing that working-class people of all races are embracing Trump’s themes of God, country, and peace.