An assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump leaves a nation stunned, as many questions remain to be answered

(CREDIT: Public Domain Photo uncredited -  Butler farm show airport, Butler County, Pennsylvania on the day of Trump’s rally, July 13, 2024)

CLICK HERE to listen to my latest appearance on WWNC News Radio 570 with host Mark Starling discussing the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump  

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Key Points:

·      Trump was wounded by an assassin’s bullet, as were two others, and Corey Comparatore died.

·      The shooter is dead but we need to find out his motive(s). This will not completely end speculation, which is now rampant on the Internet, but it will begin to help settle lingering doubts and anger.

·      Speculation that rages on the Internet, especially in social media, ranges from across the political spectrum as to who is responsible, but in many cases the persons posting material, almost none of whom were there, are absolutely sure they know the answers.

·      The Secret Service has many questions to answer. Chief among them is why they allowed the shooter to gain a roof top position on a building about 400 feet away?  It was quite possibly the best position to shoot from in the whole area.

·      Democrats are being criticized by reference to “Hitler” when talking about Trump.

— If the Democrat elites who created this narrative really believed it, so many of them would not be saying he’s “in their prayers.”

·      Democrats pulled campaign ads for a few days --- why? If the ads were accurate and appropriate a week ago why not today?

·      President Biden says “we can’t allow this violence to be normalized.” While that sentiment is correct, only days ago he said the Democrats had to “put Trump in the bullseye.”

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A rally held by Donald Trump in Pennsylvania July 13^th was invaded by an assassin who came with centimeters in his targeting from killing the former president.

A lot of questions will be poured over and hopefully answered in the coming days.

What we know to this point:

Late in the afternoon in Butler County, Pennsylvania, a Trump-organized campaign rally, like many before it, was held before a large crowd that measured in the thousands. The site was in a rural setting and was constructed for the rally using bleachers and a stage that was built for this event.

The setting was in an area that contained three buildings behind the stage, and complex of nearby buildings approximately 400 feet from the stage.

One the buildings in that complex, with a flat roof that was elevated with sufficient height to give a clear and thoroughly unobstructed view of the stage, including the podium from which Trump spoke.

Only minutes into the speech, Trump turned to his right as he discussed information on a chart that was being shown to the crowd. He suddenly clenched the right side of his head and dropped, or was pushed, to the ground and was covered by Secret Service agents.

Seconds later, in comments heard from the podium microphone, an agent told his team that shooter was down. The team of agents helped Trump to his feet, still surrounding him, as Trump defiantly raised his fists while saying what appeared to be “fight, fight, fight.” It was clear from the live video that he was bleeding from his right ear which had smeared on his face.

Trump was moved from the stage and whisked to an awaiting vehicle. But before entering the vehicle he again raised his fist defiantly again and even raised up from the door frame of the vehicle as agents tried to force him into the vehicle.

It was not immediately clear to the television audience, and many in the crowd in attendance, where the shots came from.

Within minutes, however, it was apparent that the gunman, identified later by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks, age 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, reported by the AP, had fired from the top of a building outside the perimeter established by the Secret Service, from a distance of about 400 feet, with what the FBI called an “AR-style” weapon, reported USA Today.

An AR-15 is a weapon that has the appearance of the military’s M-16, versions of which were used by U.S. and other forces. Both systems fire 5.56 mm rounds.

The difference in the weapons is that the AR-15 can fire only up to semi-automatic, meaning one bullet will fire with each squeeze of the trigger.

An M-16A1 can fire both semi-automatic and automatic mode. In automatic mode, a single trigger squeeze will continue firing until the trigger is released or the rifle’s ammunition is exhausted, and an M16A2 can be fired semi-automatic or in three-round bursts from a single trigger squeeze if set in that mode.

Corey Comperatore, identified by Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was killed by the shooter as he was able to fire multiple times (the exact number is not yet clear), according to NBC News.

David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74 were wounded according to Pennsylvania State Police, also reported NBC News, and are in stable condition as of this writing.

Many questions remain as of Monday (July 15).

In my own experience with presidential visits, one of the more important factors discussed with planners on the ground was that of line-of-sight to any place the president would be standing throughout the visit. Locations normally would be chosen that would have limited line-of-sight from inside or even longer range. Mitigation measures would be employed if necessary.

In Pennsylvania it appeared that the location from which the shooter took his shots was in fact possibly the best spot he could have hoped for.

An elevated position approximately 400 feet from the target is a very easy shot using almost any rifle.

How was this location not identified as needing to be manned by police or Secret Service?

Secondly, the fact that the shooter was able to fire several rounds before being killed by a Secret Service sniper, is puzzling.

What were the firing protocols for the counter-sniper? What was the amount of time before he was located and was killed?

Third, some witness say they saw the shooter getting into position and even pointed out his location to police who were slow to react.

Witness Greg Smith, who was outside the rally but intended to stand nearby to hear the former president, told the BBC in an interview, the shooter was able to get on top of the building.

He said that he informed (apparently) police on the ground of the shooter’s presence and could clearly see a rifle.

He asked “why is there not Secret Service on all of these roofs (sic) here?” He said he saw agents kill the shooter.

Why was this civilian able to so clearly see the shooter but no Secret Service agent or police were in position to do so?

What planning measures did the shooter employ that allowed him to evade detection of the Secret Service?  In any presidential event there are advance planners, a full advance team and the team traveling with the person being protected.

Of course, other non-tactical questions also remain.

What prior knowledge of the shooter was in possession of authorities, local, state and federal? It is possible that the 20-year-old shooter had no history with law enforcement.

Were there any connections between the shooter and any known radical individuals or groups that would suggest a conspiracy?

What evidence will a review of his phone and car yield?

Politically, both ongoing presidential campaigns, members of Congress, state representatives, and many other will want to know how this was allowed to occur.

Political questions are being asked. Why were ads pulled by the Democrats if they were appropriate just last week?

Will the director of the Secret Service or any other senior official at the agency faces consequences?

Many are commenting, as expected, on social media and will surely asked several questions to.

If the Democratic elites who created the “Trump is Hitler” narrative really believe it, they would not be out saying Trump is “in their prayers.” After all, if Hitler had been shot, there would have been no such statements. Are the Democrats serious about taking down the temperature? We will know soon enough.

To be continued….

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James Hutton is a former assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a retired colonel in the U.S. Army. Follow him on X @jehutton.