Former US President Donald Trump held a large campaign rally in Michigan on Saturday – his first since his assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. Trump dismissed concerns that he was a threat to democracy, saying he took a bullet for democracy.

Trump claims he is “not an extremist at all” and is busy campaigning for the election, which is just a week away. He suffered a gunshot wound to his right ear when a 20-year-old man opened fire at his rally on July 13.

The newly minted Republican presidential candidate denied reports that he has ties to Project 2025, a shadow manifesto of figures close to him that has been characterized by opponents as an authoritarian, right-wing wish list.

He took several digs at the rival Democratic Party and spoke about the unprecedented pressure on US President Joe Biden to abandon his re-election bid amid growing concerns about his age and mental health. If re-elected, Joe Biden will serve a second consecutive term until 2029.

“They have no idea who their candidate is… This guy goes in and gets the votes, and now they want to take it away. That’s democracy,” Trump told the 12,000-strong crowd of passionate supporters.

Trump reiterated his positions on immigration laws during his speech and spoke about the rise in immigrant crime. The Republican also repeated his claim that Democrats “rigged” the 2020 election. He expressed admiration for foreign autocrats, including China’s “brilliant” Xi Jinping, whom he praised for controlling “1.4 billion people with an iron fist.”

At the rally, Trump wore a new, smaller, flesh-colored bandage over his right ear, which had been grazed by the attacker’s bullet a week earlier. The rally was a remarkable moment by any standard, with Trump back on the campaign trail just a week after the assassination attempt.

The July 13 assassination attempt on Donald Trump left one person dead and two others seriously injured. The bullets were fired by a 20-year-old man sitting on a roof who was shot dead by the U.S. Secret Service minutes after firing his first bullet.

(With input from AFP)