Unidentified would-be-assassin slain by Secret Service, rally spectator killed and two others critically wounded at Pennsylvania political event just two days ahead of the start of the Republican National Convention at which Trump will be nominated for president.
By TONY CASTRO
A bleeding former President Donald Trump was whisked off a political rally stage and his would-be-assassin killed Saturday in Butler, Pa., where at least one spectator was slain and two others wounded.
Appearing conscious and angrily waving a clenched fist, Trump was assisted off the stage by a protective group of Secret Service agents just moments after a second volley of gunshots could be heard — apparently Secret Service snipers gunning down the suspected would be assassin.
“I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” Trump later posted on social media. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.”
Trump was showing off a chart of border crossing numbers when bangs started ringing through the crowd.
At about that moment, Trump apparently turned his head toward the chart and away where he had been looking out at the rally — and it may have been this last-second head turn that saved the former president from greater harm, according to a spectator who was watching and listening to Trump from the sixth row at the rally.
“As he moved his head to look at the chart back up on the screen, that’s when he got grazed in the ear,” spectator identified only as Vanessa told NBC Saturday night. “If he had not moved his head at that nick of time, it could have been a lot worse.”
Trump then could be seen reaching with his right hand toward his neck. There appeared to be blood on his face.
He quickly ducked behind the riser as agents from his protective detail rushed the stage and screams rang out from the crowd. The bangs continued as agents tended to him on stage.
Secret Service Spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement that the suspected shooter, who officials confirmed is dead, fired multiple shots toward the stage at approximately 6:15 p.m. He said the shooter was in an elevated position outside the rally.
Guglielmi also said that one spectator had also been killed and two others critically wounded in the gunfire. They have not been identified.
“There’s no place in America for this type of violence,” President Biden, who is running against Trump as the presumptive Democratic nominee, said in remarks. “It’s sick. It’s sick.”
In a statement, Trump’s campaign said that he is “fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility.”
Dave McCormick, a Republican running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, who was sitting in the front row, told Politico that it appeared someone behind him was shot.
“All the sudden shots started to crack, someone behind me appears to have been shot,” McCormick said. “There’s lots of blood, and then the Secret Service were all over President Trump.”
What You Need To Know
Former President Donald Trump was whisked off the stage at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday night after a shooting that killed at least one rally attendee
The shooting is being investigated as an assassination attempt, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press
According to law enforcement officials, the suspected shooter, who was outside the rally, was killed by the United States Secret Service
Trump’s campaign said that he is “fine” and is being checked at a medical facility; a spokesperson for the Secret Service said that Trump is “safe” and they are actively investigating the incident
President Joe Biden condemned the attack on his presumptive rival in November’s election, adding that he is “grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well“
President Joe Biden received multiple briefings on the incident, including one with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall, the White House said.
In a statement, President Joe Biden condemned the attack on his presumptive rival in November’s election, adding that he is “grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well.”
“I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information,” Biden said. “Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was also briefed on the incident.
“Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable,” Shapiro wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States.”
In a statement posted on social media, a spokesperson for the Secret Service said that Trump is “safe” and they are actively investigating the incident.
TONY CASTRO, the former award-winning Los Angeles columnist and author, is a writer-at-large and the national political writer for LAMonthly. org. He can be reached at tony@tonycastro.com.
