Former U.S. President Donald Trump was shot at a rally in Pennsylvania Saturday evening, but remains “fine,” according to his campaign.
Shots rang out at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Saturday evening in a dramatic scene that had the former president huddled underneath the podium while his protective detail surrounded him. Trump grabbed his ear before ducking behind the podium.
Trump, face bloodied, gave a defiant upraised fist to the crowd as he was ushered offstage by his security detail.
Two people were reported dead, including the accused shooter, according to a Secret Service source speaking to CNN.
In a social media post, Trump extended condolences to a person who was killed, and another who was “seriously injured.”
“It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country,” Trump wrote.
“Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. 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 my skin.”
“There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it,” U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement Saturday evening.
Trump was into one of his freestyle campaign rally speeches when what sounded like three shots rang out. After the first shot, Trump reached up to his right ear and then huddled under his podium while Secret Service members could be heard yelling “down, down!”
What sounded like multiple other shots were heard as members of the crowd screamed. A law enforcement voice said “shooter’s down” before Trump, surrounded by Secret Security agents, was ushered off the stage to chants of “U.S.A” by the crowd.
“(Trump) is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility,” campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their quick action during this heinous act.”
The shooter’s motivation remained unknown Saturday evening.
Trump is currently leading in national opinion polls ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November. Much of the political discourse in America over the past week and a half has been about whether or not Democrat Joe Biden can defeat Trump in a rematch of the 2020 election.
Speaking to reporters at a hastily called press conference Saturday evening, Biden said there is no place for political violence in the U.S.
“It’s sick. It’s sick. That’s one of the reasons we need to unite this country,” Biden told reporters.
“We have more detail to come, relative to other injuries, other people might be injured in the audience. I don’t have all that detail … The idea that there’s political violence, or violence in America like this, is just unheard of. It’s just not appropriate and everybody must condemn it.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who had just finished days of NATO meetings in Washington to mark the alliance’s 75th anniversary, did not immediately comment on the attack.
Posting on social media, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called the incident an attempted murder and said he was “glad” the alleged shooter was reported dead.
“My prayers are with other innocent people harmed or killed by this heinous act,” Poilievre posted on social media.