SHOOTING AT TRUMP RALLY DURING TENSE TIME IN AMERICAN HISTORY - VORAKA

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN VORAKA

Article Published on 14 July 2024 by Elena Lewis| www.vorakamag.com

At 6:10 p.m., gunshots were heard at a rally for former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump was hit in the right ear and quickly sought cover. Supporters screamed, and Secret Service agents rushed to protect him.

Within moments, someone shouted, "shooter down," and the agents began moving Trump to safety. Despite his injury, Trump defiantly pumped his fist and shouted "Fight! Fight!" to the crowd, who responded with chants of "USA! USA!"

This was the first time in over forty years that a former U.S. president was hurt in an assassination attempt. The shooter, believed to be on a nearby roof, opened fire during the rally. This act of violence came during a very unstable time in American politics, making an already heated presidential campaign even more intense.

After Secret Service snipers stopped the shooter, Trump, the leading Republican presidential candidate, was taken to a nearby hospital and declared "fine" by his campaign. Unfortunately, a male rally attendee was killed, and two other men were critically injured. The motive for the attack is still under investigation.

"I immediately knew something was wrong when I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and felt the bullet tearing through my skin," Trump later wrote on his social media platform. "There was much bleeding, and I realized what was happening." He said he was "shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear."

President Joe Biden, who was at church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, at the time of the shooting, condemned the violence on television. "There’s no place in America for this kind of violence," Biden said. "We must unite this country. We cannot let this happen."

Biden later called Trump and returned to the White House. By the evening's end, Trump left the hospital and flew back to his New Jersey home from Pittsburgh airport.

The FBI identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, but released no further details. Records showed Crooks was a Republican, though he had donated $15 to a liberal group in January 2021.

The attack occurred just two days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Trump is set to be nominated for president for the third time. Despite the incident, Trump's campaign confirmed his attendance. Biden's campaign suspended television ads, and Trump's supporters quickly blamed liberals, the media, and Biden for inciting hostility against Trump, leading to the attack.

While past presidents like George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama faced unsuccessful assassination attempts, Trump is the first current or former president to be wounded in an attack since Ronald Reagan in 1981. Recent years have seen a rise in threats against officials from both parties, reflecting the intense anger dominating political discourse.

Trump has been accused of inciting violence, notably on January 6, 2021, when he urged supporters to march on the Capitol, leading to its ransacking. However, left-wing violence also exists, such as the 2022 arrest of an armed man outside Justice Brett Kavanaugh's home and the 2017 shooting of a Republican leader during a baseball practice.

The Justice Department plans to investigate the shooting as an assassination attempt with national security implications.

Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said the shooter was in an "elevated position" outside the security perimeter, avoiding event magnetometers. The gunman fired "multiple shots toward the stage" from roughly 400 feet north, with eight shots heard.

Authorities recovered an AR-15-type semiautomatic rifle from the deceased shooter at the scene. Officials declined to discuss motives, pending further investigation.

Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police stated there was "no reason to believe any other threat exists" and it was "too early" to determine if it was a lone-wolf attack.

The rally was a standard Saturday night event for Trump, who was running late and addressing border crossing statistics when shots rang out. Local conservative activist Corey Check and Republican committeeman Nathan Rybner, sitting near Trump, heard what they initially thought were firecrackers. Eduardo Vargas, seated close to Trump, saw blood on Trump's forehead minutes after the first shot.

Amidst the chaos, the Secret Service instructed the crowd to "Get down!" Vargas and many others started crying, fearing the worst. Theresa Koshut, a teacher familiar with active-shooter drills, instinctively took cover.

Agents shielded Trump onstage, trying to move him to safety. Trump, initially shocked, insisted on retrieving his shoes before being escorted away. He managed a fist pump to rally the crowd before leaving.

The shooting occurred as Trump was leading Biden in polls, both nationally and in battleground states like Pennsylvania. Biden, facing pressure from within his party to step aside after a recent debate performance, criticized Trump’s opposition to gun control just hours before the attack.

The upcoming convention in Milwaukee will likely be electrified by the incident, heightening both political and security concerns. Trump's campaign adviser Chris LaCivita and other supporters quickly blamed left-wing rhetoric for the attack, while conservative figures like Elon Musk and Bill Ackman endorsed Trump, criticizing the Secret Service.

In contrast, Democratic leaders condemned the violence without attributing blame, expressing relief at Trump’s survival and concern about the rise in political violence. Notable Democrats like Obama, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, herself a victim of political violence, denounced the attack and called for unity.