Trump "will try to take advantage" of alleged attack, says Lula

247 - Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) said he believes that Donald Trump, the former president of the United States, "will try to take advantage" of the recent alleged attack he suffered during a rally in Pennsylvania. The statement was made in an interview with TV Record this Tuesday (16).

"I don't know what responses the Democrats gave, I don't know what responses the politicians gave. I honestly think Trump will try to take advantage of this. That photo of him with his arm raised, if it were staged, it couldn't have turned out better. But anyway, he will exploit this, and it's up to the Democrats to find a way to prevent this from being the reason he might get votes," Lula said, referring to the image of Trump with his arm raised after the incident.

The Brazilian president also commented on the emotional impact that events like this can have on the population. "I think it depends on how he will exploit this, it depends on the way. It is very difficult not to sensitize a portion of society when you are attacked, when you are killed, and then your heir wins, because this moves society. It is important to remember that normal human beings are more emotion than reason. So they get emotional, depressed and [say]: 'I will vote for the poor guy,'" he added.

In the same interview, Lula vehemently condemned the attack, calling any type of violence "abominable." "And not just with President Trump, it's the death of a mayor of a small town, it's the death of a councilman in a small town. We need to get back to having tolerance," he argued.

The president also took the opportunity to criticize the current state of political debates, emphasizing the importance of truth and argument. "What we have today is the defeat of argument. Argument is worth very little. What matters today is the lie, what matters today is fake news. Because when you tell the truth, you have to argue. When you are lying, you don't have to argue. This is the difference that is missing today in society. The return of argument to political debates," he concluded.

The alleged attempt to assassinate Donald Trump, which occurred last Saturday (13) in Butler, Pennsylvania, resulted in minor injuries to the former president, who was grazed on the right ear. The shooter also killed a member of the audience and injured two others before being neutralized by the Secret Service.

Alejandro Mayorkas, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, stated that the attack was a "failure" of security forces and announced an independent review to understand how the shooting occurred and prevent future incidents. Mayorkas also denied claims that his department had denied Trump's requests for more protection.