Officials say shooting at Trump rally being investigated as attempted murder

By JILL COLVIN, COLLEEN LONG, JULIE CARR SMYTH, MICHAEL BALSAMO, ERIC TUCKER and MICHELLE L. PRICE, Associated Press

BUTLER, Pa. (AP) — Donald Trump appeared to be the target of an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, after which he said he had been shot in the ear. The hail of bullets sparked panic among thousands of attendees and led to a dramatic scene in which a bloodied Trump was surrounded by Secret Service and then escorted to his SUV while pumping his fist in the air in defiance.

Trump’s campaign team said the likely Republican nominee was “doing well” after the shooting, in which his right ear was pierced.

“I knew immediately that something was wrong because I heard a hissing sound, gunshots and immediately felt the bullet pierce the skin. There was severe bleeding,” he wrote on his social media page.

Rally attendees screamed in panic. Shouts of “Get down!” echoed through the crowd. At least one attendee was dead and two spectators were seriously injured, authorities said. The Secret Service said it had killed the suspected gunman – who allegedly attacked from an elevated position outside the rally site, an agricultural fair in Butler, Pennsylvania – and Trump was safe.

The attack was the most serious assassination attempt on a president or presidential candidate since the assassination of Ronald Reagan in 1981. It came in a deeply polarized political atmosphere, just four months before the presidential election and days before Trump is set to be officially named the Republican nominee at his party’s convention – which his campaign team says will go ahead as planned.

“There is no place for this kind of violence in America,” said President Joe Biden, who is expected to run as the Democratic nominee against Trump. “This is sick. This is sick.”

Two officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity about the ongoing investigation. They said the shooter was not a participant in the rally and was killed by U.S. Secret Service agents.

Officials said the gunman was attacked by members of the U.S. Secret Service’s counterattack team. The heavily armed tactical team accompanies the president and major party candidates wherever they go and is designed to counter any active threat while other agents focus on security and evacuation of the person at the center of protection.

Law enforcement recovered an AR-style rifle at the scene, according to a third person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation.

Many Republicans were quick to blame Biden and his allies for the violence, arguing that the ongoing attacks on Trump as a threat to democracy had created a toxic climate. They pointed in particular to a comment Biden made to donors on July 8 in which he said, “It’s time to target Trump.”

There was no immediate information about the shooter or his motives.

A rally was disrupted by gunfire

Trump was showing a chart showing the number of border crossings when the shooting apparently began shortly after 6:10 p.m. From the moment the first shot was fired, it took two minutes for Trump to be placed in a waiting SUV.

As Trump spoke, a popping sound was heard and the former president placed his right hand to his right ear while people in the stands behind him appeared shocked.

When the first bang rang out, Trump said, “Oh,” and then he put his hand to his ear and ducked as two more bangs rang out. Then more gunshots were heard.

Someone near the microphone at Trump’s lectern could be heard shouting, “Down, down, down, down!” as the agents attacked the former president, rushing to shield him with their bodies as part of their training protocol while other agents took up positions on the stage to search for the threat.

Screams could be heard in the crowd of several thousand people. One woman screamed louder than the rest. Voices were then heard saying “The shooter is down” several times before someone asked, “Can we go?” and “Are we free?” Then someone ordered, “Let’s go.”

In the video, Trump can be heard saying at least twice, “Let me get my shoes, let me get my shoes,” and another voice saying, “I got you, sir.”

Trump stood up a moment later and could be seen reaching for his face with his right hand. His face appeared to be covered in blood. He then raised his fist in the air and mouthed the word “fight” twice from his supporters, prompting loud cheers and then chants of “USA. USA. USA.”

The crowd cheered as he stood up again and clenched his fist.

His motorcade left the venue moments later. A video shows Trump turning to the crowd and raising a fist just before he is placed into a vehicle.

Witnesses heard several shots and took cover

“Everyone got on their knees or lay on their stomachs because we all knew that shots were being fired,” said Dave McCormick, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, who sat to Trump’s right on the stage.

When he saw Trump raise his fist, McCormick said, he looked over his shoulder and noticed someone had been punched while he was sitting in the stands behind the stage.

Eventually, rescue workers managed to carry the injured man out of the large crowd so he could receive medical attention, McCormick said.

Reporters covering the rally heard five or six shots fired, and many took cover, hiding under tables. After the first two or three bangs, people in the crowd seemed startled but not panicked. An AP reporter on the scene said the noise initially sounded like fireworks or perhaps a car backfiring.

When it was clear that the situation was under control and Trump would no longer speak, attendees began to leave the venue. One man in an electric wheelchair became stuck on the field when his wheelchair’s battery died. Others tried to help him move.

Police soon ordered those remaining to leave the venue, and Secret Service agents told reporters to “get out immediately. This is a living crime scene.”

Two firefighters from nearby Steubenville, Ohio, who were at the rally told AP they helped people who appeared to be injured and heard bullets hitting the radio broadcast speakers.

“Bullets were flying around the stands, one hit the speaker tower and then chaos broke out. We fell to the ground and then the police poured into the stands,” said Chris Takach.

“The first thing I heard was some cracking noises,” said Dave Sullivan.

Sullivan said he saw one of the speakers hit and bullets raining down, and “we went down.”

He said that when the Secret Service and other authorities arrived at Trump’s home, he and Takach helped two people who may have been shot in the stands and cleared a path to get them out of the way.

“Just a sad day for America,” Sullivan said.

“After we heard the shots, the hydraulic line was spraying everywhere, you could see the hydraulic fluid coming out. And then the speaker tower started to collapse,” Sullivan said. “Then we heard another shot, and you could hear there was something there, it was bullets. It wasn’t fireworks.”

Political violence shakes America again

The dangers of the election campaign took on a new significance after the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in California in 1968 and in 1972, when Arthur Bremer shot and seriously wounded George Wallace. Wallace ran as an independent and had a platform that was sometimes compared to Trump’s. This led to increased protection of candidates, even as threats continued, particularly against Jesse Jackson in 1988 and Barack Obama in 2008.

Presidents, especially after the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, enjoy even greater security. Trump is a rarity both as a former president and as a current candidate.

Biden has been informed of the incident, the White House said. He received an updated briefing from Kimberly Cheatle, Director of the US State Department, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and White House Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall.

He told reporters after 8 p.m. that he had not yet been able to reach Trump but had been informed that the former president was “doing well.”

“I hope I can talk to him tonight,” he said.

Mayorkas, whose department oversees the Secret Service, said the officials are involved in the Biden and Trump campaigns and will “take every possible measure to ensure their safety.”

Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., posted a photo on X of Trump with his fist raised and a bloody face in front of an American flag, saying, “He will never stop fighting to save America.”

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Ohio Senator JD Vance, the three men on Trump’s shortlist for vice president, all immediately sent out statements expressing concern for the former president. Rubio shared an image taken as Trump was escorted off the stage with his fist raised and a streak of blood on his face, along with the words “God protected President Trump.”

Pennsylvania Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro said in a statement on X that he had been informed of the situation and that Pennsylvania State Police were on site at the rally.

“Violence against political parties or political leaders is absolutely unacceptable. It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States,” he said.

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Colvin, Balsamo and Price reported from New York. Long reported from Washington. Tucker reported from Westport, Connecticut. Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington, Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Will Weissert in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, contributed to this report.