I think it’s safe to say there’s not a person in the United States who hasn’t heard that we’re all currently living amid a historic event. But in case you’ve been completely cut off from the outside world (with no internet connection): On July 13, 2024, multiple shots were fired in an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania.Â
In video of the incident, Trump and members of the crowd can be seen ducking after the shots were fired, with Trump holding a hand up to his right ear. Quickly, Secret Service members surrounded him and rushed him off the stage.
According to the New York Times, one attendee of the rally and the shooting suspect himself were killed, and two additional spectators were critically injured. Trump was mildly injured as well; according to a post from Trump on Truth Social, a bullet grazed the upper part of his right ear. Trump was taken to a hospital for treatment after the incident, and later flew to New Jersey and was able to walk off his plane to spend the night at his golf club.Â
The U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle issued a statement soon after the shooting, sending condolences and assuring concerned Americans that further investigations are taking place.
This shooting is the first public presidential assassination attempt many Gen Zers have lived through, and in the aftermath, news coverage of the event has been confusing and social media has been full of speculation.Â
Here’s a recap of what we do know happened, and what we still don’t.Â
The Alleged Shooter’s Identity Was Confirmed, But His Motives Are Still Unclear.
The suspect was identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. Crooks was killed at the scene by a Secret Service sniper.
According to the New York Times, authorities recovered a semi automatic rifle resembling an AR-15 at the scene, and called bomb technicians after finding “rudimentary” explosive devices in Crooks’ vehicle. Law enforcement officials believe the gun used in the shooting was purchased by Crooks’ father.Â
Crooks had not been carrying ID, so, according to the FBI, investigators had to use DNA and facial recognition technology to identify him.Â
Crooks graduated in 2022 from Bethel Park High School with a $500 prize for math and science, according to the BBC. He was a registered Republican. Additionally, Crooks had a membership at a local shooting club, and had tried out for his school’s rifle team, but didn’t make it.Â
There is very little public information about Crooks’ life. According to the New York Times, he was interested in chess and coding, and his high school classmates noted that he was intelligent and mostly kept to himself, but had not exhibited any “glaring red flags.” Crooks had recently earned an associate degree in engineering science from the Community College of Allegheny County, and worked at a nursing home.
Crooks’ motive still has not been identified, though it appears he acted alone. Investigators are still searching for more clues about what led to this shooting.
Biden & Trump Have Spoken On The Phone Post-Shooting.
According to NBC News, Trump and President Biden spoke on the phone on the evening of July 13. Officials described the phone call as “good, short, and respectful.”
Additionally, in an address from the Oval Office on July 14, Biden called on Americans to “lower the temperature” in political discourse. Biden asked for more respectful conversations in the aftermath of the shooting, stating that American politics should never devolve into a “killing field.”
Biden urged divided Americans not to allow their political opinions to cause so much unrest. “While we may disagree, we are not enemies,” he said. “There is no place in America for this kind of violence — for any violence, ever. Period. No exceptions.”
Biden’s speech is one of only three addresses from the Oval Office that he has made during his term. Addresses from the Oval Office are typically reserved for only the most dire of situations.
The Shooting Victims Have All Been Identified
According to the New York Times, all three victims of the shooting were adult men from the Pittsburgh area.Â
Corey Comperatore, 50, was fatally shot in the head after he dove to cover his family members who accompanied him at the rally. He was a volunteer firefighter, and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania said he “died a hero.”
David Dutch, 57, is a Marine Corps veteran and is currently hospitalized with damage to his liver and broken ribs. He’s already received surgery, and is awaiting another.
James Copenhaver, 74, is married with at least one son and plays in a band. There are few updates on Copenhaver’s condition, but his friends told the New York Times they were “optimistic” about his condition and recovery.Â
The Assasination Attempt’s Effects On The Election Remain Unclear
With the political tensions already so high in the U.S., the country’s response to the Trump rally shooting could very well be a driving factor in how the election plays out. As of now, the country’s reaction appears to be further polarizing conservative and liberal voters and representatives alike.
While Democrats have been accusing Trump of inciting political violence (including the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection) for years, Republicans are beginning to blame Biden and his allies for the attack, citing incendiary language labeling the former president “pro-fascist” and “anti-democracy.” The shooting is anticipated to add to further rhetoric about Trump’s “persecution” by the Democrats. Impeachment, lawsuits, indictments and convictions followed by an assassination attempt seem to already be adding fuel to the fire.Â
Meanwhile, progressives are correlating the shooting with lax gun laws, stating if gun control were a higher priority among conservatives, this fatal incident may not have happened in the first place.
Gen Z in particular — who, in a 2024 Her Campus survey, ranked gun safety as their No. 2 concern in the upcoming election — has entered the political stage at a deeply polarizing and tumultuous time. In a year when morale surrounding voting and political involvement in general is already quite low, it’s unclear just how this political violence may affect how young voters engage with the election.