Trump Survives Assassination Attempt at Rally; Victim and Shooter Identified
Authorities identify shooter in the attack that killed one rally attendee and critically injured two. Follow for live updates.
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The FBI is investigating an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.
Former President Donald Trump is injured but safe after a bullet fired by a would-be assassin pierced his right ear about 10 minutes after the start of the rally.
The FBI named Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the subject involved in the assassination attempt. The agency said the investigation remains active and ongoing. Agency officials said they believe Mr. Crooks acted alone. No motive has been identified.
Corey Comperatore, a firefighter and father of two daughters, was identified as the sole slain victim. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said he died protecting his family.
The two rally attendees who were injured have been identified as David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and James Copenhaver, 74, of Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Both are in a stable condition, according to the Pennsylvania State Police
Former President Trump on July 14 called for unity, adding that it was “God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening.”
What else we know so far:
- The Secret Service shot and killed the attacker, who fired from a nearby rooftop with a direct line of sight to the former president. Several witnesses on the ground say they saw the man on the roof prior to the shooting and had warned law enforcement officers.
- The FBI says it is investigating the attack as both an attempted assassination and a potential domestic terrorism act. Mr. Crooks was not on the agency’s radar as a potential threat before the attack, officials said. The FBI also found a “suspicious device” while sweeping Mr. Crooks’s car and later diffused it.
- President Joe Biden has vowed a “thorough and swift” investigation of the assassination attempt and has directed an independent review of the security at the Saturday rally. The president said he had a “short, but good conversation” with former President Trump on Saturday evening. He condemned the assassination attempt, calling it “contrary to everything we stand for as a nation.”
- Democrats, Republicans, and world leaders expressed shock and issued an outpouring of well wishes.
- The Trump campaign confirmed in a statement that the former president will appear as planned at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he will be formally nominated to represent the GOP in the presidential election.
- House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and other lawmakers said that Congress intends to conduct a full investigation into the attack.
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Biden Urges Americans to Stand Together in Oval Office Address
By Emel Akan
President Joe Biden on July 14 addressed the nation from the Oval Office, highlighting a need to “lower the temperature on our politics” in the wake of the assassination attempt against his rival, former President Donald Trump.
“We are not enemies. We’re neighbors or friends, coworkers, citizens, and most importantly, we’re our fellow Americans,” he said. “We must stand together.”
This was his first Oval Office address since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel last year.
He said the political rhetoric in the country “has gotten very heated.”
“It’s time to cool it down,” the president added.
The shooting, he said, calls on Americans to “take a step back, take stock of where we are, how we go forward from here.”
The president reiterated his condemnation of the attack, saying,
“There is no place in America for this kind of violence, for any violence ever. Period. No exceptions. We can’t allow this violence to be normalized.”
“The power to change America should always rest in the hands of the people, not in the hands of would-be assassins,” the president said.
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