Former President Donald Trump was rushed offstage with blood on his ear and face after a shooting during his Saturday evening rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Trump fell to the ground, seemingly injured, after the first
pop of shots rang out. Screams could be heard coming from the onlookers
as security personnel surrounded the former president and led him away
from the lectern. Trump appeared to be calling out to the crowd and
could be seen pumping his fist as he was brought to his feet and whisked
away into a vehicle offstage.
The Secret Service said in a statement that Trump is “safe” and that the incident is being investigated.
“An incident occurred the evening of July 13 at a Trump
rally in Pennsylvania. The Secret Service has implemented protective
measures and the former President is safe. This is now an active Secret
Service investigation and further information will be released when
available,” Secret Service chief spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said.
The shooter involved in the incident has been “neutralized,” according to multiple law enforcement sources.
The shooter and one audience member are dead after the
shooting at the Pennsylvania rally, according to Butler County District
Attorney Richard Goldinger. The DA also said that a second spectator is
in serious condition.
President Joe Biden was briefed in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware,
on the shooting, the White House said. Secret Service Director Kimberly
Cheatle, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Homeland
Security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall are part of the team briefing the
president.
Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement:
“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their
quick action during this heinous act. He is fine and is being checked
out at a local medical facility. More details will follow.”
A senior Trump adviser in Milwaukee told CNN in the
immediate aftermath of the shooting that the team was working to gather
more information on the former president’s condition. The adviser was
heartened by Trump’s gestures as he was led off the stage before
entering his SUV.
“We pray he is OK,” the adviser said.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle quickly weighed in to
express their horror at the incident, condemning all political violence.
“I have been briefed by law enforcement and am continuing to
monitor the developments. This horrific act of political violence at a
peaceful campaign rally has no place in this country and should be
unanimously and forcefully condemned,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said
in a statement.
“I am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in
Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe. Political
violence has no place in our country,” said Senate Majority Leader
Chuck Schumer.
Former Trump campaign adviser David Urban told CNN’s Wolf
Blitzer that he had spoken with Dave McCormick, the Republican nominee
for Senate from Pennsylvania, who was sitting in the front row of the
rally. Trump told McCormick to “come up here onstage,” Urban said, at
which point he heard a few “pops” that sounded like “firecrackers.”
McCormick dropped to the ground at that point, and when he
got up, he said that Secret Service agents were “around everybody and
they were scattering,” according to Urban.
McCormick wrote on X that he and his wife, former Trump
administration official Dina Powell, “are praying for President Trump
and all who were injured today in Butler PA.”
This story has been updated with additional reporting.
CNN’s Hannah Rabinowitz, Zachary Cohen, Kristen Holmes,
Phil Mattingly, Pamela Brown, Emma Tucker, DJ Judd and Morgan Rimmer
contributed to this report.
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