Saturday, July 13, 2024

On Politics: What my colleagues saw at the Trump rally shooting

The shocking twist in the election is another chapter in the nation's history of political violence.
On Politics

July 14, 2024

Donald Trump, his face streaked with blood, is escorted off a stage by members of the Secret Service after being injured during a campaign rally. Trump has his right fist in the air.
As former President Donald Trump was rushed offstage at his rally on Saturday, he seized the chance to project strength before speeding to the hospital. Eric Lee/The New York Times

What my colleagues saw at the Trump rally shooting

Former President Donald Trump was onstage in Butler, Pa., launching into a familiar riff about immigration, when the pop-pop of gunfire tore through the 90-degree air on Saturday evening.

Trump grabbed his ear and dropped to the ground, as the rallygoers behind him dove for cover. He pumped his fist as he was rushed offstage with blood on his face, seizing the chance to project strength before speeding off to the hospital. He said later, on social media, that he had been shot in the ear.

The shooting at the Trump rally, coming just days before the start of the Republican National Convention, is a shocking and deadly twist in this year's presidential election — and another disturbing chapter in this country's recent history of political violence. One person who was in the crowd is dead, and two more are gravely injured. A suspect was killed by law enforcement. And the shooting is being investigated as an attempted assassination.

Trump and other Republicans have already seized on the images of his defiance and insisted that the gathering in Milwaukee will proceed. We do not know yet what this fractured country will make of this moment, or basic details about the suspect.

What we know right now, though, is what we saw. And so tonight, I want to highlight the words of two of my colleagues who were there.

One of them, Simon Levien, wrote that he heard the shots and ducked.

I came out and saw Mr. Trump raising his fist defiantly. The crowd, though subdued, cheered. I saw Mr. Trump led down the stairs of the stage to his left, taken immediately to a vehicle. An armored truck also arrived.

I saw police and men in military fatigues yank someone off the bleachers on the other side, in the direction where I'd heard the sound of gunfire.

On those stage-right bleachers, there were people crowded around several people lying prone.

"Trump was just elected today, folks," I heard a man shout. "He is a martyr."

Another colleague, the photographer Doug Mills, described the scene as the most horrific he had experienced in decades of photographing presidents. Doug heard the pops and kept taking pictures before he realized what they were.

I went from one side of the stage to another to see if I could see him any better. And that's when he got up and put his fist in the air. And I thought, "He's alive, he's alive."

I could see blood on his face. I kept taking pictures. As tough as he looked in that one picture with his fist looking very defiant, the next frame I took, he looked completely drained. Very, very shocked.

Doug turned around and saw people screaming. After he was held in a tent for about 30 minutes, he saw that people had abandoned cellphones, and even a wheelchair, in the field.

I've always feared being in this situation. I always wondered what I'd do in this situation. I hope I get the right shot. I hope I'm not shot myself.

At first I thought right away, "Could I be shot?" It was scary.

Backstage, he said, members of Trump's staff were crying, hugging and expressing relief that they were all OK.

THE LATEST ON THE SHOOTING

Former President Donald J. Trump grabbing his ear as the shooting occurred at his rally in Butler, Pa.

Doug Mills/The New York Times

Trump, on Social Media, Describes Being 'Shot With a Bullet' in the Ear

The former president wrote that he "knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin."

By Michael Gold

President Biden is speaking into two microphones at a lectern bearing the presidential seal.

Pete Marovich for The New York Times

Biden Condemns Shooting at Trump Rally, Calling it 'Sick'

"There's no place in America for this kind of violence," President Biden said in a nationally televised statement.

By Peter Baker

Donald Trump is surrounded by Secret Service agents on the stage at his rally as the crowd in the background looks on.

Eric Lee/The New York Times

Social Media Platforms Deluged by Unsubstantiated Claims About Trump Rally

Disinformation experts immediately urged caution, warning people not to jump to conclusions.

By Sheera Frenkel and Tiffany Hsu

President Biden, tieless in a blue suit, walks toward a lectern with a seal of the United States

Pete Marovich for The New York Times

National and World Leaders Condemn the Shooting at Trump's Rally

A wide range of political figures, including President Biden and other political opponents of the former president, denounced political violence and called for national unity.

By Chris Cameron

Article Image

The New York Times

Shooting at a Trump Rally in Pennsylvania: Maps and Photos

Former President Donald J. Trump was speaking at a campaign event in Butler, Pa., when shots rang out and Mr. Trump was whisked off the stage.

By Leanne Abraham, June Kim, Elena Shao, Julie Walton Shaver, Anjali Singhvi, Christiaan Triebert and Karen Yourish

Article Image

Eric Lee/The New York Times

Recent Poll Examined Support for Political Violence in U.S.

A nationwide poll last month found that 10 percent of those surveyed said the "use of force is justified to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president."

By Alan Feuer

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