Assassination attempt threatens to distract Trump from his strongest line of attack against Harris

When Donald Trump emerged, bloodied but undaunted, from the line of fire of a would-be assassin in July, he had a message for America.

The nation, he said, should “stand united and show our true character as Americans” after the shooting at his Pennsylvania rally.

His conciliatory tone appears to heed the advice of his top campaign aides, who insiders say are paying close attention to the mood of swing voters who will determine November’s election.

This critical constituency includes voters who, frustrated by the rising cost of living, are considering voting for Trump but wary of the chaos that has engulfed his first term.

Shockingly, just two months later, Trump and his campaign have been forced to rethink their message in response to yet another apparent assassination attempt against him.

But this time, the Republican candidate took a very different approach.

He singled out Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, whose “rhetoric” literally “made the bullets fly,” he said.

This statement may seem ironic to some, coming from a thunderous former president whose ad hominem attacks are a hallmark of his political image.

But it could also be a strategic mistake, with polls suggesting that Trump has the edge with voters on the two issues they have identified as their top concerns: immigration and the economy.

In his tirade against his opponents on Monday, Trump attacked not only Ms. Harris, but also the “rigged and highly partisan” debate he accuses ABC News of conducting last week.

He linked Democrats to the numerous criminal and civil cases against him, saying the country’s politics had reached “a whole new level of hatred, abuse and distrust.”

It was an angry message that resonated with his most ardent supporters.

The most vocal among them have already speculated, without evidence, that the two incidents involving Trump might not have been the product of lone wolves.

This echoes Trump’s talk of a “deep state” whose machinery is stacked against him. “They’re not coming after me, they’re coming after you,” is his usual refrain.

But it also risks alienating the moderate and swing voters the Republican nominee needs to reach if he is to win in November and recapture the White House.

Ms. Harris, for her part, is cleverly pursuing the same group.

In recent days, her campaign has won the endorsements of more than a dozen former aides to Ronald Reagan, even saying the late Republican president would have supported her.

And yet it is Trump who is best placed to echo Reagan’s winning campaign slogan: “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?”

Alarming figures released by the Federal Reserve in recent days reveal the highest rate of Americans struggling with credit card bills in more than a decade.

With 50 days to go until the election, polls show no clear leader in the race.

Trump’s advisers know that focusing on the big picture is the best path to success, and they can’t afford any distractions.

It remains to be seen whether or not they will be able to keep their candidate true to his message.

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