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TRUMP WOUNDED IN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT (WITH VIDEO)

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Former President Donald Trump survived what is believed to be an assassination attempt during a Saturday campaign rally – an event which immediately became politicized on social media amid a sea of conspiracy theories.

This is the shooting attempt as it was seen live on TV:

The Washington Post:

A shooter fired multiple rounds toward the stage at a campaign rally Saturday for former president Donald Trump in what federal officials are investigating as an assassination attempt, according to two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss it.

The shooter fired at about 6:15 p.m. “from an elevated position outside of the rally venue” in Butler, Pa., about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh, Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for the Secret Service, said in a statement. Trump put his hand to his right ear and ducked after the first of several pops. Secret Service agents surrounded him and took him off the stage, his face streaked with blood.

The shooter is dead, and Trump is safe, Guglielmi said. He added that one spectator was killed and two others were critically injured.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump’s social network, Trump said he was “shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear.” He wrote, “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin.” He also extended his condolences to the families of a person who was shot and killed and another who he said was injured.

The Guardian:

The immediate reaction to the shooting at a Donald Trump rally today was the condemnation of violence from political figures, and an early swell of conspiracy theories on social media.

Trump appeared to have been struck in the incident, while one audience member and the shooter were killed. The incident was being investigated as an assassination attempt.

Joe Biden said on X: “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. Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety.

“There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.”

Here’s Biden’s televised statement on the event:


More from the Guardian:

Lawmakers on the left and right were united in condemning political violence.

“Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable,” said the Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro on X. “It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States.I have been briefed on the situation. Police are on the scene in Butler County and working with our federal and local partners.”

Former congresswoman Liz Cheney described reports of the shooting as “horrifying”.

“Violence of any kind has no place in American politics,” she said. “We are grateful for the reaction of Secret Service and other law enforcement and pray for the former president and all those injured.”

“Laura and I are grateful that President Trump is safe following the cowardly attack on his life,” George W Bush said in a statement. “And we commend the men and women of the Secret Service for their speedy response.”

Advocacy groups, including those focused on gun control. also shared statements condemning the shooting.

[…]The condemnations of violence and the thoughts and prayers of politicians and activists followed the reflexive rituals of American politics following a shooting that rises to public notice.

The other reaction on social media has been sharply different. The word “staged” and the phrases “they missed” and “how do you miss” began trending on X in the hour following the shooting, as did the photograph of a bloodied Trump raising his fist in defiance as he was being hustled off the dais by Secret Service agents.

“Impeached. Arrested. Convicted. Shot. Still standing,” the conservative commentator Matt Walsh wrote.

“The Republican district attorney in Butler county, Pennsylvania, should immediately file charges against Joseph R Biden for inciting an assassination,” Mike Collins, a Republican congressman in George, wrote about an hour after the shooting. “Joe Biden sent the orders.”