CNA Newsroom, Jul 13, 2024 / 19:34 pm
Former President Donald Trump was wounded in an assassination attempt at a rally in western Pennsylvania on Saturday evening, with the former president being escorted out of the venue with blood on his right ear and face after shots rang out.
The alleged shooter was reportedly killed by law enforcement and one attendee at the rally was also killed, according to media reports.
“The former president is safe,” the U.S. Secret Service said in a written statement on Saturday evening that did not reference Trump's physical condition.
The incident took place at about 6:20 p.m. in Butler, Pennsylvania, shortly after the Trump rally began.
Secret Service agents shielded Trump as he appeared to lie on the floor of the stage.
Trump stood up and put his fist into the air before being whisked away by law enforcement officers. Blood was visible on the top of his right ear and on his right cheek.
Multiple media outlets reported that the alleged shooter was killed by law enforcement after the shooting took place. An attendee at the rally was also reportedly killed amid the shooting.
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In a statement posted to Truth Social, the former president thanked law enforcement “for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania."
“Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured,” Trump wrote. “It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country.”
“Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead,” Trump said. “I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”
National and church leaders, meanwhile, responded to the news with calls for prayers and with condemnation of the violence.
President Joe Biden on Saturday said he had been “briefed on the shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania.”
“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,” the president said.
“Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety,” Biden added. “There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.”
Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, and president of the U.S. Conference of Bishops, said in a statement that the U.S. bishops "condemn political violence, and we offer our prayers for President Trump, and those who were killed or injured."
"We also pray for our country and for an end to political violence, which is never a solution to political disagreements. We ask all people of goodwill to join us in praying for peace in our country. Mary, Mother of God and Patroness of the Americas, pray for us," Broglio said.
Bishop David Zubik, the bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh where the shooting took place, released a statement Saturday night in which he expressed shock at “news reports of the shooting at a political rally for former President Trump right across the street from one of our churches in Butler County.”
“We are grateful for the swift actions of the Secret Service and our local first responders,” the bishop said. “Let us join together in prayer for the health and safety of all, for healing and peace, and for an end to this climate of violence in our world. May God guide and protect us all.”
Kevin Roberts, the president of the conservative Heritage Foundation, said in a statement that the shooting was “something many of us have been worried about.”
“When the Radical Left spends years and millions of dollars calling Trump and every conservative ‘threats to democracy,’ it’s no surprise that today’s tragedy would happen,” he said. “We must pray for our country and all our leaders, and for an end to this inflammatory rhetoric of the Left and their media accomplices.”
Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, Bishop Robert Barron on Saturday said he would “offer prayers for President Trump and all those who were injured at the rally in Pennsylvania.”
“We must turn from the path of violence,” the bishop said. “May the Lord bless our troubled nation.”
Jonah McKeown of CNA and Peter Laffin of the National Catholic Register contributed to this report.
This is a developing story.
