This story was updated Sunday night at 5:59 p. m.
Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump was shot and killed Saturday during a campaign in Butler, Pennsylvania, with a bullet that hit him in the ear and caused visual injuries.
The Secret Service killed the shooter. One spectator was killed and two others were seriously injured. The FBI named Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, as the shooter and believes he acted alone.
Crooks, a 2022 Bethel Park High School graduate, worked in a nursing home as an assistant dietitian. He had shady political leanings, and as a registered Republican, he donated $15 to a progressive organization on Jan. 20, 2021.
Firefighter Corey Comperatore, 50, was killed in the shooting. Comperatore is remembered as a hero who died after being killed to protect his spouse and daughter from gunfire. David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and James Copenhaver, 74, of Moon Township, Pennsylvania, were injured.
Trump had been addressing the crowd for about five minutes when gunshots were heard. He appeared to grab his right ear before being told to get down by Secret Service agents, who jumped on him.
After the shooting, Trump appeared to have blood on his face as he raised his fist and uttered “Fight” to the crowd as he was led away by his Secret Service. The crowd sang a “United States” chant.
“At former President Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on the evening of July 13, at approximately 6:15 p. m. m. , an alleged gunman fired several shots at the venue from an elevated position outside the rally site,” the Secret Service said. in a statement. ” The incident is being investigated lately and the Secret Service has officially informed the Federal Office of the investigation. “
“I need to thank the United States Secret Service and all law enforcement agencies for their quick reaction to the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania,” Trump said in his first statement after the incident, which he shared on Truth Social. after being tested by fitness professionals.
“I shot and pierced the top of my right ear,” Trump wrote. “Without delay I knew that something was wrong, I heard a whistle, shots and without delay I felt the bullet tearing my skin. There’s a lot of bleeding, so I found out what was going on.
On Sunday, Trump said the shooting would not delay his arrival in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the Republican National Convention is due to be held this week. “Based on the terrible events of yesterday, I was going to delay my arrival in Wisconsin and the Republican National Convention. for two days, but I just made the decision that I can’t allow a ‘shooter’ or a would-be killer to force a schedule change or anything else,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Also on Sunday, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers asked Secret Service and Republican National Committee officials to reconsider a previous provision that would allow attendees to bring guns to the convention.
CNN reported that reporters at the rally heard “a series of loud explosions or bangs,” followed by Secret Service agents running toward Trump. “The Secret Service went and without delay covered President Trump. Pool heard residual thumping afterward,” a report from Pool Press reads.
NBC’s Dasha Burns described the moment the shots were heard. “We were in the middle of it while all this was happening. We get off the press elevator and get to the ground where all the participants are on the grass here at this place. The first time we heard what I thought were fireworks. I even saw a little smoke; I didn’t know what was happening.
“My manufacturer, Bianca, and I knew then that it could be something more serious,” he added. “Then we put up a barricade for security reasons. Trying to make sure that our colleagues and peers around us were safe. Everyone crouched down. As seen in this video, the former president crouched. The secret facilities came to protect him.
“It’s not something you’d expect when you play on an occasion like this. We hit the floor. We heard this continuous pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. They continued. It’s been a long time for those of us who’ve been here,” Burns concluded.
CBS’s Scott MacFarlane commented, “Let me be unequivocal about something. This is a security flaw of epic and historic proportions, as there is some kind of explosive noise.
In the wake of what appeared to be an assassination attempt on the former president, politicians and other notable public figures issued a flurry of statements against Trump and denounced the violence. President Biden made several statements in the wake of Trump’s shooting on Saturday. and Sunday, in addition to delivering a prime-time speech from the Oval Office on Sunday night.
In that speech, Biden strongly condemned the attempted assassination of the former president and at the same time denounced conservative violence, adding the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol and the physical attack on the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi .
On Saturday night, Biden said in a statement about Trump: “I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and well. I pray for him and his family and for all those who were present at the rally while we waited. “Extra information.
Biden appeared live in front of the press and cameras shortly after its release, providing additional commentary.
“Look, in the United States there is no position for this type of violence. That’s crazy. “This is sick,” the president said. “This is one of the reasons we have to unite this country. We allow this to happen. Let’s be like that. We tolerate this.
Vice President Kamala Harris shared her relief that Trump was not seriously injured and condemned the act.
“Such violence has no place in our country. We will all have to condemn this heinous act and do our part to ensure it does not lead to additional violence,” he said.
“There is surely no place for political violence in our democracy,” wrote former President Barack Obama. “While we still don’t know exactly what happened, we are all relieved that former President Trump was not seriously injured and we take this moment to re-engage. ” We are obliged to be courteous and respectful in our policy. ”
Former Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan gave one of the most emotional responses, writing, “unacceptable. Zero tolerance for any form of violence. I pray that the shaping president is well, as well as everyone involved. I don’t care what your policy is. The party is carried out through the ballot box, through weapons. Let us pray for peace and nonviolence in United States.
However, some have taken the opportunity to gloss over the attack on far-right Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene.
“Democrats sought to make this happen,” he wrote. “They have sought Trump’s approval for years and are willing to do anything to make that happen. “
She went on to list members of Congress who she said had co-sponsored legislation to end the former president’s Secret Service protection.
“Why would they need that? You know the reason,” the representative continued. “Others would have possibly been killed, other innocent people who supported President Trump and everything they sought to make America great again, and would have possibly been killed. ” Thank goodness the Secret Service was there to support Trump and everyone else at today’s rally.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a former presidential candidate, issued a statement saying: “Political violence is surely unacceptable. I wish Donald Trump, as well as all those who may have been injured, a speedy recovery. ” He also said in an interview Sunday that politics deserves to be “boring” instead of having this fiery rhetoric behind it.
Former presidential candidate and Biden’s transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, said: “In this horrible time, I am heartened to hear President Trump’s team say that the former president is doing well. An entire country will have to speak with one voice today to absolutely and unequivocally reject all political violence.
Elon Musk seized the moment to endorse Trump for president. In a short post shared on X that included video of Trump from after the shooting, “I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery.”
“The reports about the shooting in Pennsylvania are horrific,” Rep. Liz Cheney wrote. “Violence of any kind has no place in American politics. We are grateful for the reaction of secret agencies and other law enforcement and pray for the former president. and all the wounded.
Meghan McCain wrote, “Please register for me and my family to pray immediately for our wonderful country and the entire Trump family. “
Misinformation was an issue online in the hours following the shooting. Paul Bartel, senior intelligence analyst at PeakMetrics, told The Associated Press that mentions of Trump were up to 17 times the daily number on social media. “We saw things like, ‘The Chinese went,’ ‘Antifa went,’ or ‘The Biden administration did it. ‘ We also saw a claim that the RNC was this,” he said.
“Everyone is just speculating. No one knows what’s going on. They go online to check it out and find out.
Anthony Guglielmi, head of communications for the US Secret Service, denied rumors that Trump’s team had asked for more security that it did not provide. “There is a false claim that a member of the former president’s team asked for more security resources and that these were rejected. “This is surely false. In fact, we have added resources, generation, and protective functions as part of the increased speed of crusade travel,” he wrote in X.
Members of Trump’s family circle issued their own statements in the hours after the shooting.
“United States, the fabric of our country of candy is in tatters, but our courage and our common sense will have to rise up and unite again,” Melania Trump began in a long speech shared on social networks.
“When I saw the violent bullet hit my husband, Donald, I knew my life and Barron’s were about to change in devastating ways. I am grateful to the brave Secret Service agents and law enforcement officials who They risked their own lives for my husband’s.
“To the families of the guilty parties who suffer today from this atrocious act, I humbly offer my most sincere condolences. . . “
“A monster who identified my husband as an inhuman political device attempted to bring out Donald’s passion: his laughter, his wit, his love of music and his inspiration. The aspects of my husband’s life – his human aspect – were buried under dispositive political ideology. . . “
“We are all human and, fundamentally, instinctively, we need to help others. American politics is only one vehicle that can improve our communities. Love, compassion, kindness, and empathy are needs.
“And let us allow that when the time comes to look beyond left and right, beyond red and blue, we all come from families passionate about fighting for a better life together, while we are here, in this earthly world. kingdom,” she concluded.
Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, linked her mother’s death two years ago to the shooting in Pennsylvania. She tweeted: “Today it’s been two years since my mother passed away. I think I was taking care of Dad last night during the attempt on his life. I miss her”. every day and pray for the protection of the circle of family and friends she left behind.
Marla Maples, the mother of Trump’s daughter Tiffany, also tweeted her support. “We ask for prayers for my daughter’s father. . . prayers for her family and for her entire circle of family and everyone who knows how she leads her in her name. ” of all of us. . . “she wrote. ” We remain united in our faith, knowing that God’s way is the way. Those who need to prevent it are afraid of the power of God. May Christ create an opening in the centers of those who need to impede the Light and the souls of humanity.