by Jane osamor
— Former President Donald Trump at a rally Saturday evening
By St. Johnson Adegboyega
The FBI has revealed the identity of the shooter who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a rally Saturday evening in Butler, Pennsylvania, north of Pittsburgh.
Twenty-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, of Bethel Park, a suburb of Pittsburgh, was identified as the gunman who fired shots at Trump. Bethel Park is about an hour away from Butler.
One of those shots pierced the upper part of Trump’s right ear, causing blood to flow down his face. Trump confirmed that he was shot on his Truth Social platform last night.
Trump was released from a nearby hospital Saturday night, and Fox News reports that he was at his home in Bedminster, New Jersey, Sunday morning.
Crooks reportedly shot Trump from a rooftop perch some 130 yards away.
A male spectator who was killed at the rally, identified as Corey Comperatore, was called a hero by Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro at a press conference Sunday afternoon. The man, who was a former fire chief, married, and the father of two girls, covered his family as the shooting occurred.
Two others were in critical condition as of Sunday morning, but were listed in stable condition Sunday afternoon.
A GoFundMe account authorized by Trump and launched by Meredith O’Rourke, Trump’s campaign national finance director, has been set up for donations to the supporters and families wounded or killed Saturday.
Donations have surpassed $2.4 million as of Sunday afternoon by such people as former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Kid Rock.
According to the Associated Press, Crooks had used an AR-style rifle that was legally purchased by his father at least six months ago, and bomb-making materials were found inside Crooks’ vehicle near where the shooting took place and in the suspect’s home.
Crooks graduated from Bethel Park High School in 2022 and was one of nearly twenty-five students from the school to earn a $500 “star award” from the National Math and Science Initiative.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20
According to Fox News, Crooks would have turned 21 in September. He had no reported criminal or traffic citations and no reported bankruptcies, liens, or foreclosures.
Fox News also said that voting records showed he was a registered Republican, but due to his age, he only voted in the state election on November 8, 2022.
Records show that he made a $15 donation to ActBlue, a political action committee (PAC) that raises money for left-leaning and Democratic politicians, according to a 2021 Federal Election Commission filing.
The donation was earmarked for the Progressive Turnout Project, a Chicago-based political action committee that supports Democratic candidates for public office and claims to advocate for “key Democratic constituencies: young people, minorities, and low-income people,” according to Fox and Reuters.
In a July 13 post on its X page, Progressive Turnout Project has a post that says, “It’s simple people: Donald Trump is a threat to our democracy, and another four years of him would be detrimental to our country,” along with a quote allegedly made by President Joe Biden, “The choice in this election is simple: Donald Trump will destroy our democracy. I will defend it.”
In what is being called an epic failure of the US Secret Service, plenty of finger-pointing is going on as to how this could have happened. How could a shooter be so close, given Secret Service and Pennsylvania State Police protection at the event?
Reports say a man and others allegedly tried to warn authorities about Crooks and that he was armed with a rifle and climbing up on a roof, but nothing has been confirmed.
— Thomas Matthew Crooks as he was arrested
Rep. Mike Walz, R-FL, alleges that the Trump campaign requested extra Secret Service protection but was denied.
In a post on his X page, he said, “I have very reliable sources telling me there have been repeated requests for stronger secret service protection for President Trump. Denied by Secretary (Alejandro) Mayorkas.”
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi denied the allegation in a statement posted on X.
The AP reported Sunday afternoon that a local police officer allegedly had climbed to the roof of the building where Crooks was and encountered him, pointing his rifle at the officer. The officer then retreated down the ladder, and that is when Crooks shot at Trump, leading the US Secret Service counter snipers to shoot him, according to officials who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said that the House will conduct a full investigation into what went wrong with protecting Trump Saturday. “The American people deserve to know the truth,” Johnson said on X Saturday night. “We will have Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and other appropriate officials from DHS and the FBI appear for a hearing before our committees ASAP.”
There will be heightened security at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which begins on Monday. Fox reported that demonstrators will still be protesting at the convention.
President Joe Biden said that he talked with Trump Saturday evening and made a statement about the shooting.
“Look, there’s no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick. It’s sick,” Biden said. “It’s one of the reasons why we have to unite this country.”
But it’s the hateful rhetoric that people on both sides of the aisle agree that now needs to be brought down after what happened in Pennsylvania Saturday.
Trump has been called Hitler, a Nazi, a fascist, and a dictator by those in the media and by Democrats, including Biden and Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.
“We have to win to stop the Republican legislature from their worst instincts, and we know what they are,” Cooper said during Biden’s rally in Raleigh, a day after his disastrous debate with Trump. Turning his talk back to the presidential race, Cooper said that Trump would be a dictator if he is re-elected.
“Donald Trump is an existential threat to our democracy and our nation, and we have to stop him,” Cooper said
