The facts
- Three spectators were shot, one who was killed and two who were critically injured. They were all men, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens said. The shooter was also killed.
- The sounds of gunfire broke out at 6:12 p.m. Trump stopped midsentence, grabbed his ear and dropped behind the lectern as security personnel piled on top of him. A Washington Post reporter at the rally said the shooting took place about 10 minutes into his speech, describing “a cloud of smoke” and “a lot of shouting and confusion” as a second round of shots rang out.
- President Biden spoke with Trump on Saturday night, a White House official said. “There’s no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick,” Biden said in a public address the same evening, adding, “We cannot allow for this to happen.”
- After the shooting, Trump received treatment and appeared in good condition as he disembarked from a jet at Newark Liberty International Airport. A video posted by one of his aides shortly after midnight showed him descending the jet unassisted.
- A bystander video verified by The Post showed the body of a man lying on the roof of a building about 400 feet from where Trump was speaking. The shooter fired from that roof, according to a person familiar with preliminary information gathered by investigators.
The shooter
The FBI identified Crooks as the suspected gunman and called the attack an assassination attempt, adding that it was trying to determine his motive and asking the public to come forward with anything they know about the 20-year-old.
Bivens was asked whether the shooter acted alone and responded that it was “too early to say that.”
An AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle was used to carry out the attack, a U.S. official and another person familiar with the investigation said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the early stages of the investigation.
The victims
One person other than the suspected shooter died in the attack, and the victim’s identity remains unknown. Two victims were taken to Allegheny General Hospital, a trauma center about 30 miles away in Pittsburgh, and both were in critical condition as of late Saturday, according to hospital spokesperson Dan Laurent.
In an interview with Fox News, Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Tex.) said his nephew suffered a nonserious injury at the rally. “He was grazed in the neck, a bullet crossed his neck, cut his neck, and he was bleeding,” he said.
The rally
It was held at the Butler Farm Show grounds, about 35 miles north of Pittsburgh. Trump was speaking about anti-immigration policy when the shots started.
The large grounds include a lake, an indoor exhibition space and an airstrip, according to its website. Though President Biden won the crucial swing state in 2020, Trump prevailed in Butler County with more than 65 percent of the vote.
Reactions
The shooting was denounced by Republicans and Democrats, including Biden and top Cabinet members.
“There is no place in America for this kind of violence,” Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee set to face Trump in November, said in remarks from the Rehoboth Beach, Del., police department. “It’s sick. … It cannot be like this. We cannot condone this.”
Vice President Harris said she was “relieved” that Trump was not injured seriously. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas also condemned the violence.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called the shooting “despicable,” and several Republicans lauded the former president. “We all know President Trump is stronger than his enemies,” North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum (R) said on X, sharing a photo of a bloodied Trump raising his fist after the shooting. “Today he showed it.”
Some industry leaders like Tesla CEO Elon Musk and hedge fund manager Bill Ackman formally endorsed Trump in the aftermath of the shooting.
Important context
The attack happened two days before the start of the Republican National Convention, to be held Monday through Thursday in Milwaukee, where Trump is set to be selected as the Republican presidential nominee.
Soon after news of the shooting emerged, top allies of Trump accused Biden and his supporters of using rhetoric that spurred the attack.
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), who is being touted as a possible running mate for Trump, blamed Biden on X. “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.” Others including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Mike Collins (R-Ga.) expressed similar sentiments, which quickly percolated widely.
Ron Kaufman, a Republican National Committee delegate from Massachusetts, said the mood in Milwaukee ahead of the convention was one of “shock and disbelief.”
“There’s a feeling,” Kaufman wrote in a text message, “that the Democrats’ constant pounding on President Trump as ‘a threat to democracy’ leads to this.’”
Trump has himself often used inflammatory language, calling his political enemies “vermin” and warning of a “bloodbath” if he fails to win in November.
