A rally attendee was killed, and two others were critically injured in an attack condemned as “sick” by President Joe Biden. The shooter is deceased.
Former President Donald Trump sustained an injury on Saturday when a gunman opened fire at his campaign rally, resulting in the death of one spectator and wounding Trump’s ear.
The shooter, positioned on a rooftop outside the venue, was killed. Two additional spectators were critically injured. Trump’s campaign confirmed his safety.
FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek, speaking at a midnight press conference, stated that the suspect has not been identified and the motive remains unclear.
The incident occurred about six minutes into Trump’s speech in western Pennsylvania, when gunfire erupted. Trump grabbed his right ear and fell to the ground, immediately surrounded by Secret Service agents who shielded him.
The agents then helped Trump up, escorted him off stage, and took him to a waiting vehicle. Despite having blood on his head and ear, Trump waved and pumped his fist in the air as the crowd cheered.
Trump posted on Truth Social approximately 2½ hours later, describing how a bullet had struck the upper part of his right ear.
“I knew immediately that something was wrong when I heard shots and felt the bullet tearing through my skin,” Trump wrote. “There was significant bleeding, confirming what was happening.”
In his online statement, Trump expressed gratitude to law enforcement and offered condolences to the families affected by the violence.
“It is astonishing that such an incident could occur in our country,” he remarked.
According to three senior U.S. law enforcement officials, the shots originated from outside the Secret Service security perimeter established for the rally.
Suspected Gunman Positioned on Rooftop Near Trump’s Speaking Venue
Journalists observed smoke and initially mistook it for fireworks before everyone ducked and law enforcement surrounded Trump.
The audience erupted in screams as the incident unfolded.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro released a statement shortly after 11 p.m., confirming that Trump “has now left the Butler area.”
A doctor at the event informed NBC News that he witnessed a man with a gunshot wound to the head and assisted in moving him away from the rally. In a nearby parking lot, a mother and her son who were at the rally told NBC News they saw injured individuals being carried off. Hours after the incident, Representative Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, mentioned in a Fox News interview that his nephew was grazed by a bullet on his neck at the rally.
After Trump was evacuated, people remained at the scene for 10 to 15 minutes before being informed it was an active crime scene and escorted out.
Trump’s spokesperson Steven Cheung expressed gratitude towards law enforcement and first responders for their prompt action during this terrible event.
“He is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility,” Cheung stated. “More details will follow.”
Senior advisors to Trump and leaders of the Republican National Committee issued a statement late Saturday night, expressing that the former president “looks forward to joining you all in Milwaukee as we proceed with our convention to nominate him to serve as the 47th President of the United States.”
The Republican National Convention, where Trump is expected to be officially nominated as the GOP presidential candidate, is scheduled to start on Monday.
FBI leads the investigation
The FBI is heading the investigation into the shooting, as stated by the bureau. Agents are collaborating with the U.S. Secret Service, along with state and local law enforcement, treating the rally site as an active crime scene, officials said during a press conference late Saturday night.
Federal investigators have tentatively identified the suspected shooter as a male from Pennsylvania, according to five senior U.S. law enforcement officials briefed on the matter.
Law enforcement is verifying the suspect’s identity through DNA analysis since he did not have any identification on him during the shooting, according to Rojek, the FBI special agent, at the late Saturday press conference in Butler.
Following the shooting, the FBI dispatched investigative agents, bomb technicians, and evidence response teams. Intelligence analysts are also involved in identifying the shooter.
Rojek urged witnesses to the shooting to contact the FBI.
There is no indication that the attack has any foreign connections, a U.S. official stated earlier on Saturday.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., mentioned in a statement on X that he has been briefed by law enforcement. He denounced the attack as a “horrific act of political violence at a peaceful campaign rally,” emphasizing that it “has no place in this country and should be unanimously and forcefully condemned.”
Johnson later posted that the House would conduct a “full investigation of the tragic events today.”
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., stated on X that he was “calling on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to appear for a hearing.”
In a letter to Cheatle, Comer requested her voluntary appearance at a committee hearing on July 22.
Reactions from Biden and the Political World
President Joe Biden contacted Trump later on Saturday, according to a White House official. He also communicated with Shapiro and Butler Mayor Bob Dandoy.
Speaking from Delaware, Biden condemned the attack as “sick” and expressed gratitude to law enforcement during his on-camera remarks.
“There’s no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick. It’s sick,” Biden stated. “It’s one of the reasons why we need to unite this country. We cannot allow this to continue.”
“Everyone must denounce it,” Biden emphasized.
When asked by a reporter if he thought the attack on Trump was an assassination attempt, Biden said he didn’t “know enough” to make that determination at the time.
“I have an opinion, but I don’t have any facts,” he remarked, emphasizing the need to gather all the information first.
In a statement, Biden expressed that he is praying for Trump and mentioned being briefed on the incident.
“I’m 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’s statement read. “Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for ensuring his safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.”
Biden learned about the attack as he was leaving church services, according to a source familiar with the events. He wanted to address the nation once he had been fully briefed, the source added.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who was also briefed on the situation, issued a statement saying that she and her husband, Doug Emhoff, “are relieved that he is not seriously injured. We are praying for him, his family, and all those who have been injured and impacted by this senseless shooting.”
She added that “violence such as this has no place in our nation,” and urged everyone to “condemn this abhorrent act.”
Immediately after the incident, politicians began posting on social media expressing their prayers for Trump, including vice presidential contenders Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
Donald Trump Jr. shared on X that his father will “never stop fighting to Save America,” along with a photo of his father with blood on his face, pumping his fist.
Democratic leaders also issued statements expressing their shock.
“I am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on X. “Political violence has no place in our country.”
Pennsylvania’s Democratic Governor Shapiro also condemned the attack on X.
“Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable,” Shapiro said. “It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States.”
Shapiro mentioned that he had been briefed on the situation and that state police were on the scene, working with federal and local partners.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called on Americans to pray for Trump.
“Now is the time for every American who loves our country to step back from the division, renounce all violence, and unite in prayer for President Trump and his family,” Kennedy stated.
Former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., who survived a shooting in 2011, also condemned political violence in a statement.
“Political violence is terrifying. I know,” she said. “I’m holding former President Trump and all those affected by today’s indefensible act of violence in my heart. Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable — never.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., who was injured in a 2017 shooting during a baseball practice, condemned the “incendiary rhetoric” preceding the attack, which framed a second Trump term as a threat to the country.
“That incendiary rhetoric needs to stop, because all it takes is one person who’s just unhinged to hear that and go act on it, and think that that’s their signal to go take somebody out,” Scalise said in a Fox News interview.
Trump’s campaign entered a “complete communications lockdown,” according to a message sent to staff by James Blair, the political director for the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee.
“Everything is OK,” Blair wrote. “We have no details to share at this time but will follow up soon with more information.”
A Biden campaign official told NBC News that the campaign is also “pausing all outbound communications and working to pull down our television ads as quickly as possible.”