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Biden calls for unity after attempted assassination of Trump
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Speaking from the Oval Office, President Biden said the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was a time to cool down heated political rhetoric in the country.
Trump was injured in an assassination attempt Saturday when a gunman opened fire at him at a rally about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh. One person at the rally was killed and two others wounded before Secret Service agents killed the shooter.
Biden said he ordered a review of what security measures went wrong. Trump says he is traveling to Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention this week.
- The FBI identified the gunman as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pa. Investigators say they believe he acted alone and they have not established a motive.
- Corey Comperatore, 50, was the spectator killed at the rally. Comperatore’s wife described him as a girl dad and a firefighter who loved his community and his family.
- Researchers say a significant share of Americans have expressed a tolerance — or outright support of — political violence.
Wisconsin Trump supporters reflect on the shooting and look ahead to the convention
By Elena Moore
Jeff Noncent of West Allis, Wis., was moved to tears as the crowd erupted in a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner."
He was attending a prayer vigil held in downtown Milwaukee in response to the shooting at former President Donald Trump's Pennsylvania rally on Saturday. And for Noncent, there's a personal connection.
"I became an American citizen under Donald Trump's presidency," he told NPR, trying to hold back his tears. Noncent, who immigrated from Haiti, voted for Trump in 2020 and plans to do so again this year.
"Donald Trump is truly an American.... And I am forever thankful for what he did," he said. "I'm happy that I became an American citizen under his leadership."
Standing nearby was Chris Slinker, a Wisconsin delegate for the Republican National Convention.
When he first found out about the shooting, he said he was scared, but upon finding out Trump was OK, the feeling changed into a campaign rallying cry.
"I think it's another big milestone of the election that will probably work in the favor of the conservative movement because the president was nearly murdered," Slinker said. "I think some people will, I'm hoping, see what's happening."
He argued that the shooting won't take away from the convention this week.
"I think this event will be essential to Trump continuing his message," he said. "I think that the core of this party is here to rally around President Trump and support him."
Also walking around the park was 23-year-old Wisconsin delegate Dixon Wolfe. He said the violence on Saturday may get more younger voters engaged and supporting Trump ahead of the election.
"Even the people who weren't very political in the first place, I saw them posting on social media that they'd made their decision on who they were voting for," he said.
To Wolfe, who lives in Green Bay, Wis., Trump is the ideal candidate for young voters.
"Young voters are really hurting right now. We're hurting with our rent, with our grocery prices. The economy is in shambles. And so we like the idea of Trump," he said. "We want to have a future where we're able to raise families that are strong and that we're able to afford things to have a bright future."
Trump supporters gather for prayer vigil in Milwaukee
By Elena Moore
On the eve of the Republican National Convention, supporters gathered in downtown Milwaukee, not to celebrate the start of the week, but to pray in the wake of the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
A handful of mostly Christian faith leaders spoke to around 100 supporters and organizers in a park just a short walk from the convention center.
"Join us in praying for America, praying for Trump and our leaders, and praying that this whole mess will unite our country," Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk wrote afterward on X.
Turning Point Action, the activist wing of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, organized the event. The group is taking on a larger role than in past years, launching an on-the-ground organizing program in several key swing states ahead of the election this fall.
Biden calls to 'lower the temperature' in politics after Trump assassination attempt
By Elena Moore
In an Oval Office address to the nation Sunday evening, President Biden denounced political violence and stressed the need for Americans to stand together despite ideological differences.
“I want to speak to you tonight about the need for us to lower the temperature in our politics,” Biden said. “We're neighbors or friends, coworkers, citizens. Most importantly we are fellow Americans, we must stand together,” Biden added.
The president referenced a series of recent incidents of political violence in the U.S., including attacks on members of Congress and the insurrection on the Capitol on Jan. 6. At the end of that list, he added the assassination attempt of the former president.
“We can’t allow this violence to be normalized,” Biden said. “I believe politics ought to be an arena for peaceful debate.”
Despite delivering the speech from the Oval Office, there was a clear political undertone in Biden's speech. He nodded to the Republican's upcoming convention and said he plans to resume campaigning this week. He promised to make his case for why he should remain in office.
Biden also addressed the ongoing investigation of Saturday's shooting and said the motive of the shooter remains unknown. He didn't disclose additional information.
"We don't know his opinions or affiliations," Biden said. "We don't know whether he had help or support or if he communicated with anyone else.”
RNC protesters say there are no changes to their plans
By Liz Baker
Organizers of the largest expected protest against the Republican National Convention say the shooting at Donald Trump’s campaign event has not impacted their planned rally and march on the convention’s opening day.
“I think Trump breeds a lot of hate, and I think the shooting has nothing to do with us and we will continue the march as planned,” said Omar Flores, spokesperson for the Coalition to March on the RNC, adding that they do not anticipate counterprotests from people upset about the assassination attempt.
Organizers expect more than 5,000 people to attend the protest on Monday, “a lot more” than they initially planned. Flores attributes this in part to Biden’s performance in the first debate.
“With Biden honestly not looking so hot right now in terms of polling and how he’s been doing as a whole, it makes the threat of a Trump presidency a lot more imminent,” he added, “which has actually been really good for the turnout for our march.”
President Biden to carry on with planned travel
By Jeongyoon Han
President Biden intends to carry on with planned travel to Las Vegas this week. He will attend the NAACP National Convention on Tuesday and the UnidosUS Annual Conference on Wednesday, the White House said.
Biden had earlier said he would postpone a planned trip to Austin, Texas, on Monday, after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
Biden — who is giving an Oval Office address to the nation on Sunday night — will receive an update from law enforcement officials and members of the Department of Homeland Security on Monday morning, the White House said.
Experts outline failures and successes of Trump rally security
By Gabriel Spitzer
The security response to the shooting at a Donald Trump rally over the weekend was both a textbook success and an alarming failure, said former Secret Service agents.
"That response by the agents assigned to President Trump appears to be appropriate, timely and well done," says Tim McCarthy, president of Sentinel Security and a former member of the Secret Service Presidential Protection Division under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. He points to the swift moves by agents to "cover and evacuate" Trump moments after the shots rang out.
At the same time, he says, security agencies will have a lot of difficult questions to answer.
"It's very disappointing that we're going down this road again in terms of political violence, and that we almost had another national tragedy," he says.
McCarthy himself was on the scene of the most recent historical analog to Saturday's assassination attempt: the 1981 attack on President Reagan. McCarthy was part of the president's secret service detail that day, and sustained a bullet wound to the chest while protecting him.
"That was a failure. You know, we did a lot of good things, but a round ricocheted off the car and hit the president under the left armpit, so that was not a total success. And we have to view this in the same way: It's great that [President Trump] was only wounded in the ear, but it certainly wasn't a total success by any means."
William Gage, a 13-year Secret Service veteran under the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations, says rallies such as Saturday's present major security challenges.
"This has become a trend by political candidates where, in the last 15 or 20 years, they want these large outdoor events which are very, very difficult to secure."
Gage notes that the federal law enforcement, including the Secret Service, also faces significant staffing challenges, especially during campaign season.
"And so the Secret Service just begins to get stretched really, really thin," says Gage.
NYT photojournalist appears to capture the moment a bullet whizzed past Trump
By Joe Hernandez
A photojournalist who was on the scene covering Trump’s rally on Saturday appeared to capture an image of the exact moment a bullet whizzed past the former president’s head.
The image was taken by New York Times photographer Doug Mills, one of four media photographers permitted in the buffer zone around the stage.
Doug Mills, a New York Times photographer, appeared to capture an image of a bullet streaking past Donald Trump’s head, a former FBI agent said. He took the photo while documenting the rally that turned into an attempt on a former president’s life. https://t.co/nhtORaXDZj pic.twitter.com/32UI1GDcoO
Mills told NPR’s All Things Considered that at first he didn’t realize the loud pops he heard were gunshots, but then he saw that Trump was bleeding.
“I kept taking pictures and then I realized that he had grimaced and then he grabbed his ear and then he took his hand off his ear and there was blood on his ear and then he went down,” he said. “And I was like, ‘oh my God, he’s been shot.’ ”
Mills continued to snap photos as Secret Service agents surrounded the former president, and as Trump defiantly pumped his fist in the air in the moments after the attempted assassination.
As Mills was preparing to send his photos back to the newspaper, he realized that he might have been taking pictures while the shooting occurred. He asked his photo editor to take a close look at the images filed.
“She said, ‘there’s actually a picture with the bullet going behind him,’ ” Mills recounted.
Support for political violence in U.S. has stayed relatively high since January 6
By Ashley Lopez
A significant share of Americans have expressed a tolerance — or outright support of — political violence in the years leading up to this weekend’s assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump.
Robert Jones, the CEO and founder of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), says his group has been tracking these views since the violent riot at the Capitol in 2021 — which he says has influenced many Americans’ views.
“We have been tracking really an uptick in tolerance for political violence and an uptick in violent rhetoric in our national conversations over the last few years,” he says. “And of course, we had Jan. 6, which was a kind of outbreak of political violence where people died.”
Since then, Jones’ nonpartisan group has asked voters in 10 different surveys in recent years whether they agree with the statement: "because things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.”
When his group first asked voters in 2021, 15% of respondents agreed with the statement. Last October, support for those views topped out at 23% support.
Jones says PRRI asked voters again this April and support dipped down to 19% support.
“So, it’s still higher than it was in 2021, but a little off of that high point,” he says. “But across all surveys, we find a fairly consistent pattern there. And that's what I think is the most important thing in support for political violence: is that it is not evenly distributed across the population.”
Jones says that all the surveys consistently found that “self-identified Republicans are three times more likely than Democrats to say they believe true American patriots may have to resort to violence to save the country.
He said, according to all these surveys, the biggest predictor of support of political violence is the embrace of Christian Nationalism – which is a belief that the U.S. is a Christian nation and its laws should be rooted in Christian beliefs and the Bible.
“Nearly four in 10 of them agree that true American patriots may have to resort to violence to save the country, compared to only 7 in 10 of those who fully reject those views,” Jones said. “So we see this very consistent pattern where it's not nonexistent on the left, but it is something on the order of three times more prevalent on the right than on the left.”
Some experts say Trump’s embrace of events on Jan. 6 has also likely resonated with some of his supporters who now have more permissive views of using violence for political ends.
Security plan to remain in place for the RNC
By Jeongyoon Han
Officials from the city of Milwaukee, the Secret Service and FBI said their security plan for the Republican National Convention will remain in place.
Officials noted in a press briefing Sunday that the RNC is designated a “national special security event,” the government's highest status of security, and that all levels of government have been involved in planning for the last 18 months.
“We’re not anticipating any changes to our current security footprint or planning,” said Audrey Gibson-Cicchino, the RNC coordinator for the U.S. Secret Service. “We have an operational security plan that’s built out for every area of responsibility related to any and all aspects of security related to this event.”
She said they would continue to assess the situation and adapt as needed.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael Hensle said the bureau is investigating the chatter that has bubbled up since the shooting Saturday, but said there was “no known articulated threat against the RNC” or any attendee.
Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman reiterated that coordination was happening between the city and federal officials. He said the police department was “very comfortable” with the current plans.
“We got this,” he said. Norman emphasized the police department’s commitment to protecting not just convention attendees, but also city residents.
“This is our community, too,” Norman said.
Biden and Trump spoke briefly after the assassination attempt
By Franco Ordoñez
President Biden and Donald Trump spoke after the assassination attempt against the former president Saturday night.
The tone of the conversation “was short and respectful," according to a Trump source briefed on the call who was not authorized to speak on the record.
Biden called the conversation “short but good.”
“I'm sincerely grateful that he's doing well and recovering,” Biden said from the White House on Sunday.
FBI officials say they believe the shooter acted alone and have yet to establish a motive
By Carrie Johnson
Ryan Lucas
FBI officials investigating the shooter in Butler, Pa., who targeted former President Donald Trump say they believe he acted alone and have not yet established a motive for Thomas Matthew Crooks’ alleged actions.
Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office who is leading the investigation into the assassination attempt, said key evidence collected from the scene is being shipped to the FBI lab in Quantico, Va. These include an AR-style 556 rifle, which was purchased legally, as well as Crooks’ cellphone.
Also being analyzed is a device found in Crooks’ car. NPR previously reported that the device was explosive in nature. Rojek would not definitively say that, but other officials on a call with reporters said it was “rudimentary” in nature.
“Our primary focus is on the phone and we’re working to get access to the phone,” Rojek said.
Crooks’ family is cooperating with the investigation, FBI officials said. His father purchased the weapon used in the attack and investigators are looking into how Crooks gained access to it.
Investigators are also looking into Crooks’ actions in the days and weeks before the shooting, Rojek said.
Robert Wells, assistant director of the FBI’s counterterrorism division, said the bureau was investigating the incident as “an act of domestic terrorism.”
There were no indication that Crooks had mental health issues and they found no threatening language on his social media accounts. The investigation is still in its early stages, he said. Investigators have limited insight into recent communications that Crooks made — texts and phone call details — that thus far has not revealed any motive for his actions. Rojek said the FBI has not yet identified an ideology associated with the shooter.
The Senate will launch an investigation into the Trump assassination attempt
By NPR Washington Desk
Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., plans to launch an investigation into the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump, an aide confirmed to NPR on Sunday. Peters is also running the Senate Democrats' 2024 campaign operation.
On Saturday, the House Oversight Committee announced it would launch an investigation.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., also vowed a full investigation, saying, “The American people deserve to know the truth.” Johnson promised to call FBI and Department of Homeland Security officials to testify.
Pennsylvania officials identify all 3 attendees who were shot
By Joe Hernandez
The Pennsylvania State Police have released the names of the two attendees who were shot and wounded during the assassination attempt on former President Trump during a Saturday evening rally.
The two Pennsylvania residents are David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington and James Copenhaver, 74, of Moon Township.
Both men are hospitalized in stable condition.
Earlier in the day, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced the identity of the audience member who was killed during the rally, a 50-year-old married father of two named Corey Comperatore.
Trump says he will head to Milwaukee today for the Republican National Convention
By Emma Bowman
Former President Trump says the assassination attempt against him won’t interfere with his plan to leave on Sunday afternoon for Milwaukee ahead of this week’s Republican National Convention there.
“Based on yesterday’s terrible events, I was going to delay my trip to Wisconsin, and The Republican National Convention, by two days, but have just decided that I cannot allow a “shooter,” or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "Therefore, I will be leaving for Milwaukee, as scheduled, at 3:30 P.M. TODAY.”
In a separate post a few minutes later, Trump said: "UNITE AMERICA!"
At the convention, he is expected to accept the party's nomination for president and announce his running mate. His speech is set for Thursday.
Security at the RNC is being stepped up after Saturday's shooting at the former president’s rally in Butler, Pa.
Biden orders independent review of security measures at Trump's Pennsylvania rally
By Ben Giles
President Joe Biden said Sunday there’s “no place in America” for political violence “or any kind of violence for that matter” following the assassination attempt on the life of his rival, former President Donald Trump.
He also urged patience as the FBI takes the lead in investigating the shooting at Trump’s Saturday campaign rally in Butler, Pa.
“We don't yet have any information about the motive of the shooter. We know who he is,” Biden said from the White House. “I urge everyone, everyone, please don't make assumptions about his motives or his affiliations. Let the FBI do their job, and their partner agencies do their job.”
The FBI has identified the gunman as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pa.
Biden spoke briefly with Trump last night, and said he’s “sincerely grateful that he’s doing well and recovering.”
He also extended condolences to the family of 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, a firefighter who was killed during the assassination attempt.
“He was a father, who was protecting his family from the bullets that were being fired,” Biden said. “And he lost his life, God love him.”
The president said he’s ordered the Secret Service to provide Trump with “every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure his continued safety.”
He further ordered the Secret Service to review all security measures in place for the Republican National Convention, scheduled to begin in Milwaukee on Monday.
Biden also ordered an independent review of national security measures in place at Trump’s rally, and promised to release the results of that investigation to the American people.
“We must unite as one nation,” Biden said in closing. “We must unite as one nation to demonstrate who we are. “
Biden said he would give further remarks in an address from the Oval Office on Sunday night.
Satellite imagery shows what's thought to be the shooter's location
By Alyson Hurt
Daniel Wood
Nicole Werbeck
Stephen Fowler
A satellite view of the Butler Farm Show Grounds in Bulter, Pa., shows that the shooter who targeted former President Trump in an attempted assassination on Saturday was positioned less than 490 feet from the rally stage where Trump stood when the shots were fired.
Pennsylvania's governor called the attack 'absolutely unacceptable and tragic'
By Joe Hernandez
In a press conference from Butler County on Sunday afternoon, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro condemned the assassination attempt against Trump and said he was grateful the former president was safe. Shapiro also offered prayers to the other victims who were shot in the attack.
“Last night was shocking for this community, for this commonwealth and I know for this country,” he said.
“Disagreements are OK, but we need to use a peaceful political process to settle those differences,” Shapiro, a Democrat, added.
Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old married father, was killed in the shooting, Shapiro told reporters. Two other Pennsylvanians were injured and remain in critical condition, according to the governor.
Shapiro said he spoke to Comperatore’s family and the family of another victim, and left a message for the third victim’s family.
Shapiro said he directed flags to be flown at half staff in Comperatore’s memory.
The governor urged Americans to stay engaged in the political process without resorting to the kind of violence that occurred in Pennsylvania Saturday night.
“If you look at the story of this great nation over the last 248 years, a nation that was born right here in Pennsylvania, it’s been ordinary Americans every single step of the way rising up, demanding more, seeking justice, advocating for change — and doing so peacefully,” Shapiro said. “And those who have advocated for such change peacefully, they have been the ones to bring that about.”
Pennsylvania's governor identifies the man killed at yesterday's Trump rally
By NPR Washington Desk
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro identified the man killed in Saturday’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump as Corey Comperatore, 50.
Shapiro said he spoke to Comperatore’s wife, who described him as a girl dad and a firefighter who went to church every Sunday; a man who loved his community and his family.
Comperatore, Shapiro said, was an avid supporter of Trump and was “so excited to be with him last night in the community.”
Comperatore’s wife told Shapiro, he said, that her husband dove on his family to protect them during the shooting. He was a “hero,” she told the governor.
Arizonans react to Trump assassination attempt
By Ben Giles
In Arizona, a state Donald Trump narrowly lost in 2020, the former president’s allies have called for prayers in the wake of the assassination attempt on his life, while his political opponents have decried political violence – and demanded accountability for what some are calling the Secret Service’s “security failure.”
Kari Lake, the frontrunner for the GOP nomination in the state’s closely watched U.S. Senate race, said on X that she was “shaken and horrified by the assassination attempt on President Trump’s life today.”
In an appearance on Right Side Broadcasting Network, Lake said “I also pray that this great Republic, that we can come together as Americans. We got a lot of work ahead, and we’re just blessed beyond measure to have President Trump ready to lead us.”
Arizona state Sen. Jake Hoffman, the state’s elected RNC national committeeman and leader of the local far-right Freedom Caucus, attacked the media and liberals as “assassination deniers,” claiming they spread misinformation and disinformation by not immediately reporting the incident as an attempt on Trump’s life in the minutes and hours after the shooting at a Butler, Pa. campaign rally.
“Trump Derangement Syndrome is real,” Hoffman also wrote on X. “They just tried to kill President Trump. Pray for President Trump. Pray for our nation.”
Other Republicans used the attempt on Trump’s life, and images of the former president pumping his fist in the air as he was whisked offstage by Secret Service agents, as a contrast to President Joe Biden, who’s faced criticism over his fitness to serve following a disastrous performance in a recent debate.
Tyler Bowyer, an executive with Turning Point Action, the advocacy arm of an Arizona-based right wing group founded by Trump ally Charlie Kirk, wrote, “Joe Biden can’t complete sentences, Donald Trump fist pumps after assassination attempts. Pick your POTUS.”
Meanwhile, Democrats such as Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs decried the assassination attempt and said they were grateful for Trump’s safety.
“Political violence is unacceptable, and has no place in this country,” Hobbs wrote on X.
Former Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords – who was shot in the head more than a decade ago at a constituent event outside Tucson, Ariz. – said she knows all too well how terrifying political violence is.
“I’m holding former President Trump, and all those affected by today’s indefensible act of violence in my heart,” Giffords wrote. “Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable – never.”
Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, the presumptive Democratic nominee in the state’s U.S. Senate race, issued a statement from his congressional office demanding answers from Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.
”The bottom line: this was a failure in security,” Gallego stated. “There should never have been a clear line of sight on the former President. My Marine Corps training taught me that.”
“Those responsible for the planning, approving and executing of this clearly insufficient security plan need to testify before Congress and be held accountable.”
What we know so far about the alleged gunman
By NPR Washington Desk
The FBI has identified the gunman as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pa.
Crooks was a registered Republican who donated $15 through ActBlue, the Democratic-allied organization, in 2021. That's according to Pennsylvania voter registration and Federal Election Commission data.
Crooks was shot and killed by Secret Service agents after his attack last night in Butler, Pa. The FBI is still working to determine a motive for his actions.
Investigators believe the suspect's father purchased the gun used at the rally, according to a person familiar with the investigation who was not allowed to speak publicly. The source also confirmed that at least one explosive device was found in the dead suspect's vehicle. Authorities said they believe it was workable, the source said.
Investigators will want to learn if Crooks acted alone or was working with others, and where and how he obtained the weapon used in the shooting. They’ll likely speak to people who Crooks was recently in contact with and sift through his social media, phone records and computer web search history.
You can read more about the investigation into the alleged shooter here.
Biden will speak from the White House at 1:30 p.m. ET
By NPR Washington Desk
President Biden is slated to deliver remarks at 1:30 p.m. ET from the Roosevelt Room, the White House said.
In remarks from Rehoboth, Del., on Saturday, Biden called the shooting at the Trump rally "sick" and said political violence cannot stand in this country.
“The bottom line is the Trump rally, the rally, should have been able to have been conducted peacefully without any problem," Biden said. "The idea that there’s political violence in America like this, it's unheard of, it's just not appropriate. Everyone must condemn it. Everyone.”
World leaders condemn the assassination attempt
By Jackie Northam
Leaders from around the world are condemning the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on Saturday at a rally in Butler, Penn. Allies and adversaries are sending Trump well wishes, at the same time denouncing the violence that has gripped the campaign for the White House.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was “appalled by the shocking scenes” at the rally where Trump could be seen grabbing his right ear as blood spurted across his face. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was sickened by the shooting. “It cannot be overstated – political violence is never acceptable,” he wrote on X.
That was a sentiment shared by other world leaders. French President Emmanuel Macron said the attempted assassination is a “drama for our democracies,” he wrote on X. “France shares the indignation of the American people."
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said violence is “irrational and inhumane.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and his wife Sara were shocked by the attack, adding “We pray for his safety and speedy recovery.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who met with Trump at the former President’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida just two days before the shooting, also sent his best. “My thoughts and prayers are with President @realDonaldTrump in these dark hours,” he wrote on X.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa wrote on X that he hoped American leaders and people will “seek peaceful solutions.” George Charamba, a Zimbabwean government official, said in a post on X that “Americans must stop behaving like barbarians from an ancient civilization.”
Meanwhile, Somalia’s former foreign minister Abdisaid Muse Ali issued a tongue in cheek statement, calling for African observers to monitor the U.S. elections in November.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, of Brazil, said the attempt against former President Trump was unacceptable and should be repudiated by “all defenders of Democracy”. Trump's close ally Jair Bolsonaro, the former president of Brazil, sent wishes for a speedy recovery. Bolsonaro survived an assassination attempt in 2018.
Another close ally of Trump's in the region, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador, quickly tweeted his response. Bukele has often said U.S. democracy is being tested by the multiple criminal cases against Trump. Just minutes after the shooting, he tweeted "Democracy?"
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was concerned by “the attack on my friend,” adding that “violence has no place in politics and democracies.”
Pakistan's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, called the shooting a “shocking development.” Imran Khan, the country's former prime minister — and now imprisoned opposition leader — wrote on X that “Political violence is a tool of cowards.” Khan was shot and injured at one of his political rallies in November 2022.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin has no plans to call Trump. He downplayed some of the conspiracy theories that have been swirling around since the attack on Trump, saying Russia doesn’t believe it was organized by the Biden administration, but the atmosphere it created around Trump “provoked what America is faced with today.”
Official channels in China reported that President Xi Jinping expressed his sympathies to Trump. The attempted assassination was the top trending subject on Chinese social media site Weibo. One person commented on how quickly Trump reacted, swiftly ducking under the podium after the shots were fired. Another said the person most harmed by the incident was Biden. Weibo says a Triumph for Comrade Trump meme is hugely popular.
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley calls for a Senate investigation into security failures
By Jason Rosenbaum, St. Louis Public Radio
U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley is calling for a Senate investigation into the assassination attempt that wounded former President Donald Trump and killed one person Saturday at a rally about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh.
“We got to understand: How did this happen? How is it that he was allowed to get up there? Why did it take so long to respond?” Hawley said in an interview Sunday with St. Louis Public Radio. “I don't have the answers to any of those questions. And I don't have any speculation. But I do want the facts,” said the Missouri Republican.
Click through for more from St. Louis Public Radio's conversation with Hawley.
Steve Scalise, shot in a 2017 political attack, calls assassination attempt 'alarming'
By Joe Hernandez
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise told Fox News he was grateful Trump survived the attempt on his life at a Pennsylvania rally Saturday night.
“It’s alarming to think we came this close to not having him with us,” he said. “Thank God that he’s OK.”
Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, was himself shot and injured in 2017 during an attack on a Republican team practice for the Congressional Baseball Game at an athletic field in Alexandria, Va. He suffered serious internal injuries and was hospitalized for several weeks.
“God was on the ballfield with me. I think God was there with President Trump,” he said.
Scalise criticized the “hyper-charged” political environment of the current presidential campaign, and called for a thorough investigation by law enforcement into the shooting.
“I want to see a very serious focus on recognizing that this was an assassination attempt on a leading candidate for president of the United States.”
Harris postpones a planned trip to Florida in light of the assassination attempt
By NPR Washington Desk
Vice President Harris has called off plans to travel to Palm Beach County on Tuesday in light of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, a source familiar with the plans tells NPR’s Deepa Shivaram.
The source spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss travel details.
Harris originally had planned to discuss Trump and restrictions on reproductive rights with a group of Republican women at the event.
President Biden and Harris are at the White House this morning, where they are being briefed by homeland security and law enforcement officials.
'Politics should be kind of boring': Sanders urges a peaceful path forward
By Rachel Treisman
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., called on the country to use this moment to regroup and tone down the rhetoric.
"It's time for all of us to take a deep breath, remember what this country is about, what political campaigns are about," he said on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday. "And they're about serious discussions of serious ideas as to how we address these serious problems facing this country."
WATCH: Sen. Bernie Sanders says democracy is not about "radical rhetoric" after Trump assassination attempt.
"Politics should be kind of boring.”
@SenSanders continued: “We have got to see is serious discussion of serious issues and not this kind of harsh rhetoric." pic.twitter.com/UZhWHVOhrz
Sanders condemned political violence as unacceptable and un-American. He has been personally affected by it in recent years.
The man who shot Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) at a congressional baseball practice in 2017 had volunteered on Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign. And in April of this year, a man was arrested for starting a fire at Sanders' Burlington office (Sanders was not present, but seven staffers were).
"If there's any silver lining in this tragedy, it's to figure out how we go forward peacefully, constructively and intelligently," Sanders said.
He said that the nation, and democracy, is not about radical rhetoric but rather a serious discussion of how to proceed. And he argued that those conversations are actually pretty unexciting.
"In a certain way... politics should be kind of boring," Sanders said, pointing to issues like improving a dysfunctional healthcare system and addressing wealth inequality.
"I think what we have got to see is serious discussion of serious issues, and not this kind of harsh rhetoric that we have heard for the last number of years," he added.
Melania Trump urges Americans to 'ascend above the hate'
By Ben Giles
Former first lady Melania Trump urged her fellow Americans “to ascend above the hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence” like the assassination attempt Saturday against her husband, former President Donald Trump.
In a statement, the former first lady expressed gratitude to the Secret Service agents and law enforcement who protected Trump, and sympathy to the families of the one person killed and two others wounded in the shooting at the Butler, Pa. campaign rally.
And she described in loving detail her husband – “his human side,” she said, that has been “buried below the political machine.”
“A monster who recognized my husband as an inhuman political machine attempted to ring out Donald’s passion – his laughter, ingenuity, love of music, and inspiration.”
pic.twitter.com/IGIWzL6SMJ
“Let us not forget that differing opinions, policy, and political games are inferior to love. Our personal, structural, and life commitment – until death – is at serious risk. Political concepts are simple when compared to us, human beings,” she added.
Trump, who’s scheduled to attend the Republican National Convention this week in Milwaukee — a rare public appearance, as she has been noticeably absent on the campaign trail and at her husband's lengthy hush money trial in New York — said the time has come “to look beyond the left and the right, beyond the red and the blue.”
“Dawn is here again. Let us reunite. Now,” she added.
“I commend those of you who have reached out beyond the political divide – thank you for remembering that every single politician is a man or a woman with a loving family.”
Investigators believe the suspect's father purchased the gun used at the rally
By Washington Desk
Investigators say they believe the gun used by Thomas Matthew Crooks, the alleged gunman who opened fire at a Trump rally last night, was bought by his father six months ago, according to a person familiar with the investigation who was not allowed to speak publicly.
The source also confirmed that at least one explosive device was found in the dead suspect's vehicle. Authorities said they believe it was workable, the source said.
Officials are working to determine a motive for Crooks’ actions and also to examine how he obtained the weapon.
Pence, speaking from experience, says political violence 'must be universally condemned'
By Rachel Treisman
In a statement issued Sunday morning, Former Vice President Mike Pence expressed gratitude for Trump's recovery and condemned political violence — something with which he has personal experience.
Pence wrote on X that he and his wife Karen are praying for Trump's recovery, as well as for those "lost and injured in this horrific attack."
"There is no place in America for political violence and it must be universally condemned," he wrote.
Pence, who has not endorsed Trump, has blamed the former president for endangering his life on January 6, by pressuring him to block the certification of the election results and telling angry supporters that he hoped Pence would "do the right thing."
Some of the protesters who later stormed the Capitol building to interrupt the vote certification chanted "Hang Mike Pence."
Pence has since condemned both political violence and Trump's actions, saying in 2023 that "His reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day."
What are FBI investigators looking at? A former special agent weighs in
By Rachel Treisman
The FBI has taken over as the lead federal law enforcement agency investigating the assassination attempt.
Former FBI special agent Kenneth Gray says that process could take weeks or even months, not days.
"There's gonna be a lot of steps," Gray, now a senior lecturer at the University of New Haven, told NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday.
He says the investigation will include interviews with witnesses and other individuals.
A primary focus is on the Bethel Park, Pa., house of the suspected shooter, with agents likely to seize his computer for forensic analysis and take any sort of evidence that could link the suspect to the event. He says the FBI will also likely reach out to social media platforms to freeze the suspect's accounts and get copies of posts, in case that sheds light on a possible motive.
The FBI investigation will concentrate on the shooter and shooting itself, he added, while the U.S. Secret Service will have to do their own probe into what went wrong with their protection detail.
Gray says that since the suspect is dead — having been shot by Secret Service at the rally — the investigation will not result in a court case or other type of criminal procedure. It's more likely to come to a conclusion in the form of a report.
Separately, the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability has also announced plans to open an investigation into the shooting.
Sen. Lindsey Graham says nation needs 'soul searching' following Trump assassination attempt
During an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said “we probably need to do some soul searching as a nation” following Saturday’s assassination attempt against former president Donald Trump.
He also joined calls for political leaders and voters to bring down the temperature on rhetoric following the assassination attempt.
“I wish I could say I was surprised, but I've been worried about this for a very, very long time,” Graham told NBC’s Kristen Welker. “You know, if he wins, democracy is not going to end. He's not a fascist. He represents a point of view that me and others share. The rhetoric is way too hot.”
Graham said he is glad to see his “Democratic colleagues are saying really good things” following the shooting in Pennsylvania – and was specifically happy to see that President Biden called Trump yesterday.
When asked about some of the responses from fellow Republicans – specifically Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio – Graham declined to weigh in.
Vance said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that yesterday’s events were “not just some isolated incident.”
“The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs,” Vance wrote. “That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination.”
Graham said the focus right now should be on being “grateful” Trump wasn’t more seriously injured.
“Let's just today be grateful that our former president, political nominee, survived an assassination attempt,” he said. “And I'll try to do better here... I don't want to go down that road right now.”
Graham, who is an ally and friend of Trump's, also mentioned that he was supposed to play golf with Trump this morning and had talked to him many times throughout the week.
“There's a lot going on in the world,” he said. “He was excited about playing golf. He thought he had something that could help my swing.”
Could the assassination attempt affect Trump's VP decision?
By Rachel Treisman
Trump confirmed he will still speak at this week's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he is expected to accept his party's nomination for president and announce his running mate.
A shortlist has circulated in recent weeks, and Trump has hinted publicly that he already knows who that person will be. It's not clear whether last night's events might change his thinking.
But NPR political correspondent Mara Liasson says that she thinks it does make Trump more confident of victory.
"And generally when candidates are confident, they feel freer to choose the candidate they really want," she says, as opposed to strategically picking a running mate who might help them win over a certain constituency.
So recent events probably give Trump a freer hand. At the same time, she says she "can't think of a presidential candidate whose VP pick means less," given Trump's dominance in the party.
Trump's potential VP picks — including Sens. JD Vance of Ohio, Tim Scott of South Carolina and Marco Rubio of Florida — are among the Republican elected officials offering statements of prayer and support to the former president.
An NPR reporter’s eyewitness account of the shooting
By Danielle Kurtzleben
Joe Hernandez
Among those in the crowd during the Saturday rally was NPR political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, who was covering the event along with other news media.
Kurtzleben told NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday that, roughly 10 minutes into Trump’s speech, a series of loud pops rang out and those in the press pen took cover.
“We all and plenty of people in the crowd as well dropped to the ground and waited for the pops to stop,” she said.
Kurtzleben then saw a cluster of Secret Service agents surround Trump, who held his fist in the air in the moments after the assassination attempt to cheers from the audience.
Quickly, many attendees tried to leave the crowded rally in rural Butler, Pa., about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh. “You had a lot of people in a place that’s just hard to get out of quickly,” she said.
A small group of rally-goers also began shouting at the press following the shooting, saying they were at fault for the attempt on Trump’s life.
“It was a level of anger that I have not seen at a Trump rally,” Kurtzleben said. “Some immediately leapt to blaming the press.”
Some of the most significant assassinations and attempts on leading U.S. political figures
By Sarah McCammon
July 14, 2024 at 10:24 AM EDTThe attack on former President Trump calls to mind past incidents of political violence in U.S. history, including assassinations and attempts on leading political figures. Here’s a look at several of the most significant moments of this kind in U.S. history.
Four sitting American Presidents have been assassinated. President Kennedy’s assassination was the first of several high-profile and pivotal assassinations during the tumultuous and violent 1960s, including the killings of civil rights leaders Malcolm X in 1965 and Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, and Kennedy’s own younger brother, presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, in 1968. President Lincoln was assassinated by a Confederate sympathizer, just after the end of the Civil War in 1865. The two others, though less-discussed today, were President James A. Garfield, who was assassinated in 1881 and President William McKinley, in 1901.
About two months into his first term as President, Ronald Reagan was shot outside the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., on March 30, 1981. Reagan, his press secretary, a Secret Service agent, and a police officer were injured. The president was hospitalized for 12 days.
The civil rights leader was shot and killed in Tennessee while preparing to march on behalf of Black sanitation workers who were striking for better working conditions. King had faced arrests, violence, and threats for his civil rights activism and had alluded to the risk to his life in his public comments.
George Wallace, the Alabama governor who became infamous for his segregationist views, was shot and paralyzed from the waist down during a speech near Washington, D.C. in 1972, while campaigning for President. Civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., who himself had been assassinated four years earlier, had called Wallace “perhaps the most dangerous racist in America today,” noting Wallace’s exceptional rhetorical skills. However, Wallace eventually had an apparent change of heart and spent his later years seeking forgiveness for his promotion of racist ideas and policies.
Robert F. Kennedy, the brother of the late President John F. Kennedy, was killed by a Palestinian from Lebanon who said that he was angry about Kennedy’s support for Israel. The shooting came while RFK was running for President, less than five years after his older brother’s assassination in 1963 — and just months after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Teddy Roosevelt, who had first served as vice president, initially became President in 1901 as a result of the assassination of President William McKinley. Roosevelt himself would later face an assassination attempt on his own life while campaigning for a third term as President in 1912 in Milwaukee. Roosevelt survived the shooting but ultimately lost the election to Woodrow Wilson.
The shooting of former President Trump comes after a period of heightened political extremism and threats of violence, according to historian Leah Wright Rigueur of Johns Hopkins University. She points to shootings of members of Congress in recent years, including Gabby Giffords and Steve Scalise, as well as the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol as examples of escalating tendencies toward political violence.
“We’ve passed a tipping point,” she told NPR. “This is an incredibly important and dangerous moment in American history.”
Trump gets a boost of sympathy going into the convention
By Rachel Treisman
The assassination attempt seems to be earning Trump sympathy and heightening the dynamics of the presidential race, says senior national political correspondent Mara Liasson.
"Before it was about whether Biden would be dropping out or staying in, now its all about Trump as a victim and a martyr," she told NPR's Weekend Edition.
Trump had already been running as the "grievance" and " retribution " candidate, painting the mounting legal cases against him as political persecution.
"And now he is literally a victim," Liasson says.
At the same time, she says, Trump looks very strong in this moment — sharpening the contrast with Biden, who is facing calls from within his party to drop out of the race following a weak debate performance last month.
Biden's campaign is taking down political ads at least for now. Liasson says the Republican Party was already confident going into its convention next week, fueled in large part by Biden's debate performance.
"The message was going to be that Trump is strong and Biden is weak," she adds. "I think that message is going to be even more dramatic this week."
The FBI is leading the investigation into the assassination attempt
By Ryan Lucas
Joe Hernandez
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is now leading the inquiry into the shooting at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday and asking for tips from the public.
The Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also involved in the investigation.
The suspected shooter, identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pa., was killed on the scene by Secret Service agents.
Updated FBI statement on the ongoing incident that took place today in Butler, Pennsylvania. https://t.co/MfwVeYs3kF pic.twitter.com/6fWqcTbA1S
At a press conference around midnight, FBI special agent Kevin Rojek said investigators had not identified a motive in the shooting.
Investigators will want to learn if Crooks acted alone or was working with others, and where and how he obtained the weapon used in the shooting. They’ll likely speak to people who Crooks was recently in contact with and sift through his social media, phone records and computer web search history.
There are also questions about how the shooting that injured Trump — a former president and the presumptive Republican nominee — was able to occur in the first place. William Ralph Basham, Jr., a former Secret Service director, told NPR that the fact that this happened was a failure by the agency, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement Saturday night that violence like this is an attack on American democracy, and that the Justice Department will bring every available resource to bear in the investigation.
House speaker says he believes God 'spared' Trump from the shooting
By Barbara Sprunt
House Speaker Mike Johnson told NBC’s Today Show that he sent former President Donald Trump a text “immediately” after reports of a shooting at his rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday evening.
“I believe that God spared him, and that bullet went just apparently a millimeter from doing real and permanent damage to him or perhaps taking his life,” Johnson said. “Obviously, we can’t go on like this as a society.”
Johnson said he’s received briefings from law enforcement and spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Saturday evening, noting he asked “pointed questions regarding Homeland Security and what happened there.”
Johnson specifically said he asked Mayorkas whether drones were being used in the vicinity of the rally and that Mayorkas said he “didn’t know when I asked him that question.”
Hours after the attack, Johnson announced Congress will do a full investigation of the shooting when lawmakers return from recess on Monday, July 22.
“In the meantime, we've got to turn the rhetoric down. We've got to turn the temperature down in this country,” he said. “We need leaders of all parties on both sides to call that out and make sure that happens so that we can go forward and maintain our free society that we all are blessed to have.”
Secret Service says claims that it denied additional protection for Trump are 'absolutely false'
By Jason Breslow
The Secret Service is denying allegations that it turned down a request for additional protection for former President Trump. In a statement posted to X (formerly Twitter), Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi called the claim by a House Republican lawmaker "absolutely false." He wrote:
Theres an untrue assertion that a member of the former President’s team requested additional security resources & that those were rebuffed. This is absolutely false. In fact, we added protective resources & technology & capabilities as part of the increased campaign travel tempo
The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability has already announced plans to investigate the attempted assassination of the former president. "There are many questions and Americans demand answers," wrote the panel's chairman, Rep. James R. Comer (R-Ky.), in a statement on Saturday. Comer said he has contacted the Secret Service for a briefing and is calling on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to testify to the committee.
Presidential historians weigh in
By Sarah McCammon
The attack on Trump, a former president and presumptive Republican nominee, marks one of the most serious acts of political violence involving leading political figures in recent memory.
Leah Rigueur, historian at Johns Hopkins University, called the event a “shocking moment with immediate parallels to a larger culture of American political violence.”
Rigueur said it calls to mind the shootings of members of Congress Gabby Giffords and Steve Scalise, the foiled kidnapping attempt against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and other events.
Rigueur sees the attack as part of a trend toward increasing threats for about 15 years, and called the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol was a “warning of ordinary Americans’ willingness to turn to extremism during intensely heightened political moments.”
Lindsay Chervinsky, a presidential historian and author of Making of the Presidency, said this reminds her of the 1960s — a time of “racial tensions, economic challenges, unpopular wars, divisions within the parties and sectional realignments.”
Chervinsky expressed concerns about the potential for “escalation of violent rhetoric among his supporters” and a heightened sense of “persecution.”
Yale historian Joanne Freeman said there is still much to be learned about the attack, but said that violent rhetoric “helps normalize this kind of act.”
Security at the RNC in Milwaukee is ramped up
By Ximena Bustillo
The Trump campaign says security is being stepped up around the site of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee as Republicans from across the country have begun arriving in the city.The RNC, already a high security event, is drawing guests from across the country to join the proceedings to formally nominate former President Donald Trump as the Republican Party candidate for president.
The shooting Saturday did little to deter support for people like Cooper Walden who traveled from Illinois. He quickly learned of the assassination attempt through social media.“I think there are going to be some people that feel that way, just, you know, to just see someone that you support the attack like that, you know, really hits you,” Walden explained.
Walden is not a delegate but he is one of thousands expected to be in Milwaukee for the convention this week.
Trump promised Sunday morning in a post on Truth Social that he would be in Wisconsin for the RNC.
The event kicks off Monday.
Trump confirms he will speak at the RNC
By Megan Pratz
Rachel Treisman
The former president commented publicly on the shooting for the first time since the immediate aftermath with a note on Truth Social:
Trump confirmed he will speak at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. His speech is slated for Thursday, the final day of the four-day event.
"In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win," he said. "I truly love our Country, and love you all, and look forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin."
Trump also thanked supporters for their thoughts and prayers, and wrote that it was "God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening."
He offered prayers to those wounded and condolences to the loved ones of "the citizen who was so horribly killed."
The U.S. Secret Service has said two people were critically wounded another killed, all adult males.
FBI identifies the alleged shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks
By Krishnadev Calamur
Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20 year-old man the FBI has identified as the shooter at former president Donald Trump's political rally Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Crooks was a registered Republican who donated $15 through ActBlue, the Democratic-allied organization, in 2021. That's according to Pennsylvania voter registration and FEC data.
Crooks was shot and killed by Secret Service agents after his attack last night.
Leaders across Europe denounce the attack against Trump
By Esme Nicholson
BERLIN — Europe’s leaders are joining presidents and prime ministers across the world in speaking out against political violence following the shooting that wounded former President Trump in Pennsylvania last night.
Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholz has condemned the attack on Trump, calling it despicable. Writing on X, Scholz wished Trump a speedy recovery and warned that “such acts of violence threaten democracy.”
The attack on US presidential candidate Donald Trump is despicable. I wish him a speedy recovery. My thoughts are also with all of those who were affected by the attack. Such acts of violence threaten democracy.
Also writing on X, Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban, sent Trump his “thoughts and prayers” in what he called “these dark hours.”
Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, said she hopes “dialogue can prevail over hate and violence” in the next few months of the election campaign, while British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was “appalled by the shocking scenes” at the rally.
I am appalled by the shocking scenes at President Trump's rally and we send him and his family our best wishes.
Political violence in any form has no place in our societies and my thoughts are with all the victims of this attack.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she is deeply shocked, a sentiment shared by the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, who has called the shooting “unacceptable.”
I am deeply shocked by the shooting that took place during former President Trump’s campaign rally.
I wish Donald Trump a speedy recovery and offer my condolences to the family of the innocent victim.
Political violence has no place in a democracy.
Demonstrators say they still plan to protest at the Republican National Convention
By Liz Baker
Organizers of the largest expected protest against the Republican National Convention say their plans have not changed in light of the shooting at Trump’s campaign event in Pennsylvania.
“We are confident in our security plan,” said Omar Flores, a spokesperson for Coalition to March on the RNC, in a statement on Saturday night.
He emphasized the group’s experience organizing protests without injuries and violence, but noted there will be “teams of experienced marshals and medics prepared to keep us safe.”
Anywhere from 2,500 to 5,000 people are expected to attend that rally and march on the first day of the RNC.
The hotly contested march route was only recently worked out on Friday with the city of Milwaukee — which is hosting the convention — to allow demonstrators within sight and sound of RNC delegates at the Fiserv Forum arena — but not within the security perimeter for the venue.
In-person campaigning for Biden will go on hold, for now
By Tamara Keith
Democratic volunteers were supposed to go out knocking on doors and campaigning for President Biden today, but a campaign official says in-person campaigning is on hold, for now. This follows an earlier announcement from Biden's campaign that they were rushing to pull down all TV ads and other messaging in light of the attack on Trump. It's not clear how long the campaign will pause activity, given that the Republican National Convention starts on Monday in Milwaukee and Trump's campaign has already sent a fundraising appeal following the shooting.
NYPD to increase Trump Tower patrols after shots fired at Donald Trump rally
By Jon Campbell, Gothamist/WNYC
New York City will increase police patrols at Trump Tower and other locations on Saturday after U.S. Secret Service agents rushed a bloodied Donald Trump from the stage after gunshots rang out at a rally for his presidential campaign in Pennsylvania.
Deputy Mayor Fabien Levy announced the boosted police presence Saturday evening, saying the surge of police resources comes out of an “abundance of caution” and not in connection to any specific threat. There is no known connection between the incident at the Pennsylvania rally and New York City, he posted on the social media site X.
Keep reading at gothamist.com
The events at the rally came at a moment of growing fear about political violence
By Jeongyoon Han
Elected officials, as the public policy organization Brennan Center for Justice has analyzed, have seen higher rates of turnover because of a greater number of threats being made to elected officials. Those threats have large impacts on the public that these officials seek to serve as well, according to the Brennan Center.
As NPR Politics Correspondent Sue Davis tells host Scott Detrow, the prevalence of threats and violence “underscores a political reality that Americans, are in many ways, ready for.”
Former congresswoman Gabby Giffords — herself a survivor of political violence, responded to what happened at the Trump rally by saying, "Political violence is terrifying. I know."
"I’m holding former president Trump, and all those affected by today’s indefensible act of violence in my heart," she said. "Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable—never."
Originally published 7:40 p.m. ET Saturday night
Political rivals and top Congressional leadership denounce the violence
By Ximena Bustillo
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Senate Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., both denounced the violence at the rally.
“Political violence of any kind is never acceptable,” Jeffries said in a social media post.
Schumer in a statement said he was “horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe.” He echoed that “Political violence has no place in our country.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell also denounced the violence on a "peaceful rally." House Speaker Mike Johnson also called for the violence to be condemned and that he has been briefed by law enforcement and will continue to monitor the developments.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also issued a statement : "I thank God that former President Trump is safe. As we learn more details about this horrifying incident, let us pray that all those in attendance at the former President’s rally today are unharmed."
Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders also called the violence “unacceptable.”
“I wish Donald Trump, and anyone else who may have been hurt, a speedy recovery,” he said on the social media platform X, formally known as Twitter.
Originally published at 7:27 p.m. ET Saturday night
The Secret Service is investigating how the man who shot Trump got as close as he did
By The Associated Press
The U.S. Secret Service is investigating how a gunman armed with an AR-style rifle was able to get close enough to shoot and injure former President Donald Trump at a rally Saturday in Pennsylvania, a monumental failure of one the agency's core duties.
For more, head to the full story ➡️
Secret Service: One person was killed, two critically wounded, gunman dead
By Danielle Kurtzleben
BUTLER, Pa. — Former President Donald Trump was the target of an assassination attempt Saturday when a gunman opened fire at him at a rally about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh.
One person was killed in the shooting and two critically wounded, the U.S. Secret Service said. All were adult males, law enforcement officials said at a news conference. The gunman was shot dead by the Secret Service.
Trump was rushed off stage and the rally ended soon thereafter.
Early Sunday, the FBI identified the subject involved in the shooting as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pa., which is about 40 miles south of Butler.
“It’ll be some time before we can conclusively answer” if it was a lone gunman, Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said at a news conference late Saturday.
See how the Trump rally shooting unfolded
By Grace Widyatmadja
Nicole Werbeck
The former president, who was speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, said in a statement on his social media website that he knew something was wrong.
He wrote quote: "I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin."
To see more, head to the full story ➡️
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