Former President Donald Trump is calling for national unity and resilience as he recovers from Saturday’s apparent attempt to kill him
On the heels of an apparent attempt to kill him, former President Donald Trump called Sunday for unity and resilience as shocked leaders across the political divide recoiled from the shooting that left him injured but “fine” and the gunman and a rally-goer dead.
The presumptive Republican presidential nominee said the upper part of his right ear was pierced in the shooting. His aides said he was in “great spirits” and doing well.
“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 wrote on his social media site. “Much bleeding took place.”
In a subsequent post Sunday, Trump said “it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening.“
“In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win,” his post said.
The FBI early Sunday identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as it pressed its investigation.
Secret Service agents fatally shot Crooks. The gunman attacked from an elevated position outside the rally venue at a farm show in Butler, the agency said.
One attendee was killed and two spectators were critically injured, authorities said. All were identified as men.
Investigators believe the weapon had been purchased by Crooks‘ father at least six months ago, two law enforcement officials said. Federal agents were still working to understand when and how his son obtained the gun and gather additional information about Crooks as they worked to try to identify a motive, the officials said.
The officials were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.
An FBI official said investigators had not yet determined a motive. One attendee was killed and two spectators were critically injured, authorities said.
Crooks’ political leanings were not immediately clear. Records show Crooks was registered as a Republican voter in Pennsylvania, but federal campaign finance reports also show he gave $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day President Joe Biden was sworn in to office.
Authorities told reporters that Crooks was not carrying identification so they were using DNA and other methods to confirm his identity. Law enforcement recovered an AR-style rifle at the scene, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the investigation.
The attack was the most serious attempt to kill a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. It drew new attention to concerns about political violence in a deeply polarized U.S. less than four months before the presidential election. And it could alter the tenor and security posture at the Republican National Convention, which will begin Monday in Milwaukee.
Organizers said the convention would proceed as planned.
Trump flew to New Jersey after visiting a local Pennsylvania hospital, landing shortly after midnight at Newark Liberty International Airport. Video posted by an aide showed the former president leaving his private jet flanked by U.S. Secret Service agents and heavily armed members of the agency’s counter assault team, an unusually visible show of force by his protective detail.
Biden, who is running against Trump, was briefed on the attack and spoke to Trump several hours after the shooting, the White House said.
