Trump held his first campaign event since the apparent assassination attempt

FLINT, Mich. — In his first public appearance since an apparent assassination attempt was thwarted on Sunday, former President Donald Trump continued to offer a disjointed but dire picture of America if he does not win in November.

Speaking at a town hall in Flint with Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, his onetime White House press secretary, Trump mentioned the threats against him — including the assassination attempt against him in July in Butler, Penn. — as evidence that his policy proposals around things like tariffs for foreign-made automotives are powerful.

“You know, only consequential presidents get shot,” he said. “You have to do what you have to do, right? You have to — we have to be brave, otherwise we're not going to have a country left.”

Trump said he spoke with Vice President Kamala Harris about Sunday’s incident where a man with a long criminal history allegedly pointed a rifle through a fence several holes ahead of where he was golfing at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.

“A little while ago, I got a very nice call from Kamala,” he said. “It was very nice, it was very nice, and we appreciate that, but we have to take back our country. We have to win. We're going to win, and we're going to Make America Great Again.”

Trump took three questions from the audience in addition to providing lengthy monologues about relationships with foreign leaders, his rally crowd attendance and how his comments aren’t rambling but rather “genius” statements.

“What do you see as the major threats to the future of Michigan manufacturing auto worker jobs, and what will you do to eliminate those threats?” a Ford worker named Isaiah asked.

Trump began his response by saying the only major threat was