Donald Trump called for national unity against “evil” as the FBI investigates the motive for an assassination attempt at a US presidential rally on Saturday.
The Republican candidate was wounded at a campaign rally Saturday evening in what the FBI called an assassination attempt, an act of political violence that could change the course of the 2024 presidential election and further polarize the country with less than four months until November's election.
“Instead of fear, we remain true to our faith and stand against evil,” the former president posted on his Truth Social platform on Sunday.
“Now more than ever, it is important that we come together, show our true character as Americans, remain strong and resolute, and do not let evil win.”
“Only God prevented the unthinkable from happening,” Trump added, saying he looked forward to “speaking to the people of our great country from Wisconsin this week.”
Trump will attend the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Monday, where he will be formally named the Republican presidential nominee.
Trump received treatment at a local medical facility after the incident and departed western Pennsylvania late Saturday. A campaign official posted a video of Trump descending the steps of his private jet in New Jersey early Sunday, commenting that he was “strong and tenacious. He will never stop fighting for America.”
Both Republicans and Democrats supported an investigation into the apparent security failings.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, in an interview with NBC News on Sunday, said he had asked “tough questions” of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who oversees the Secret Service, which provides security for current and former US presidents, about the surveillance measures taken at the rally, including whether drones were used.
“We need to know if there were people at that altitude that were seen by passers-by on the ground,” he said. “Why didn't the Secret Service notice that?”
“We need to know whether this was a failure of procedure, a failure of resources or a failure of the people who were there that day,” House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner told CNN.
Arizona Senate candidate Ruben Gallego wrote a letter to Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle calling on “all those responsible for developing, approving and implementing this failed security plan to be held accountable and immediately testify before Congress.”
Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania also called for an investigation and called for calmer rhetoric ahead of what could be the biggest election “in our lifetimes.”
According to the US Secret Service, shots were fired into the stage shortly after Trump began the rally from an “elevated location” outside the venue in Butler, Pennsylvania. Authorities said one spectator was killed – identified by Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as 50-year-old former fire chief Corey Comperatore – and two others were seriously injured. All victims were men.
After the shooting, Trump was hurried off the stage, crouched down, surrounded by Secret Service agents, blood coming from his right ear and blood streaks down his face. He pumped his fist and yelled at the crowd, “Fight, fight, fight!” before being loaded into a motorcade and taken away for medical attention.
The FBI identified the shooter as Thomas Crooks, a 20-year-old man from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, a battleground state town about 40 miles from where the rally took place.
Crooks was shot and killed by a Secret Service agent on the roof of a building outside the outdoor venue where Trump was speaking. The FBI said it was not yet clear what motive Crooks had for trying to kill the former president.
Crooks was a registered Republican, according to state voter records, and he donated $15 in 2021 to the Progressive Turnout Project, a left-leaning voter mobilization group, according to campaign finance records.
Instead of traditional fundraising, the Trump campaign had called on supporters to donate to the victims and their families.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris received updates in the White House Situation Room on Sunday from Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement officials, including Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Christopher Wray, Mayorkas and Cheatle.
The White House said late Saturday that Biden and Trump had spoken following the assassination attempt.
Biden was at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, when the shooting occurred. He told the nation in a brief address that “this kind of violence has no place in America,” before rushing back to the White House late on Saturday.
