New details are emerging about the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump as investigations look into — and try to understand — the security lapses that preceded Saturday’s shooting at his campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Videos, witness accounts and key points provided through authorities reveal what happened moments before the attack that killed a rally attendee and wounded Trump and two others.
The U. S. Secret Service The U. S. Department of State Police notified through the Pennsylvania State Police of a suspicious user with a rangefinder on the ground at 5:51 p. m. Saturday, about 20 minutes before the gunman opened fire, according to three sources familiar with the law enforcement briefing with members of Congress on Wednesday. At the time, local authorities were unaware that the suspect possessed a firearm, according to a local law enforcement officer and the Butler County sheriff.
Cellphone video also shows demonstrators pointing at the shooter, later known as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, and to alert the government to his presence, two minutes before he fired. opens fire on the former president.
The United States Secret Service is now facing growing questions about loopholes that allowed the shooter to fire from a rooftop near the meeting. Investigations are focusing on the shooter and the shooting itself, as well as how the assassination attempt may have occurred.
Trump made three appearances this week at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee with a bandage over his right ear and increased security around it. The former president’s son, Eric Trump, told CBS News that his father still had a “nice flesh wound. ” in good mood. “
The father of Thomas Matthew Crooks called police before Crooks opened fire at a rally for former President Donald Trump, a law enforcement source confirmed Thursday.
The father was worried about his son and his whereabouts, the source said.
The shooting killed one man and wounded three others, including Trump, before the gunman killed via a Secret Service sniper.
Law enforcement resources told CBS News that the weapon used in the attack, an AR-style semiautomatic rifle, was legally purchased in 2013 and recorded on the call from the shooter’s father.
The government is still the motive.
The family is cooperating with investigators, according to the FBI.
The Secret Service on Thursday criticized attacks on its female agents following the assassination of former President Donald Trump.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle is facing calls to resign after the shooting left one, Trump and two others wounded.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who joined calls for Cheatle to resign, called her a rookie on diversity, justice and inclusion. Rep. Tim Burchett also published a similar article about Cheatle, who previously worked as chief safety officer at Pepsi.
“I can’t believe a DEI rental in @pepsi is a bad choice at the head of the secret service. #sarcasme,” he wrote after the shooting.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi rejected claims that female agents are unqualified, all Secret Service agents are highly trained and fully competent.
“It is an insult to the women in our firm to recommend that they be unqualified because of their gender,” Guglielmi said in a statement. “Such unfounded claims undermine ourArray’s professionalism, determination, and expertise. Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion ensures that we attract the most productive talent, fostering a strong and effective team that reflects the society we serve. We are united against any attempt to discredit our and their invaluable contributions to our project and are appalled by the derogatory and disgusting comments made against one of our Array
Female agents have been part of the secret service for more than 50 years. Cheatle served in the Secret Service for approximately three decades prior to her appointment as director.
She is not the first woman to lead the agency. Julia Pierson served as director of the Obama administration.
Cheatle told CBS News last year that his goal is to recruit 30% through 2030 in an effort to diversify the Secret Service.
People pay tribute to Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief and father of Buffalo Township, who died while protecting his family from gunfire at Trump’s rally on Saturday.
Visitation is scheduled to begin at 2 p. m. to four in the afternoon and from 6 to 8 p. m. Thursday at Laube Hall on Community Park Road in Freeport, Pennsylvania.
In the morning, Buffalo Township fire trucks drove a pickup truck with their former leader’s structure from the Redmond funeral home downtown to Laube Hall in a small procession.
Read here.
– CBS Pittsburgh
Authorities are continuing to investigate how the attack rifle used by the shooter at Trump’s rally was not noticed by authorities prior to the shooting, according to a user familiar with the investigation.
Investigators are investigating theories, adding that the shooter had the gun in a backpack or simply hid it earlier near the building from which he fired.
Police resources showed that the gunman had climbed an air conditioner to the roof from where he began his attack. One theory is that he hid the gun next to the device.
Investigators are racing to piece together the shooter’s home on the day of the shooting and in the months, weeks and days leading up to the assassination attempt.
Several other people briefed on the investigation into Donald Trump’s attempted assassination told CBS News that U. S. Secret Service agents did not save the former president from speaking at the rally in Pennsylvania because they did not know a user had been reported. suspicious. through the United States National Intelligence.
When Trump took the stage, there were reports of a suspicious person, who turned out to be the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, who only had a rangefinder but had no weapon and made no active threats, the other people briefed said.
The Secret Service has been informed that local authorities are following up on the suspect’s report, according to other people briefed on the investigation.
A sniper from a local tactical team deployed to assist the Secret Service at Trump’s rally on Saturday took a photo of the shooter and saw him through a rangefinder minutes before the gunman opened fire, a local law enforcement official told CBS News.
—Pat Milton, Nicole Sganga
After the FBI identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, CBS News and other news outlets reviewed public documents confirming he was a registered Republican who in the past had donated $15 to a Democratic organization through ActBlue.
The obvious contradiction in Crooks’ political alignment was compatible with a simple partisan narrative and so far, according to researchers, many questions about his motives remain unanswered. Some social media users have taken advantage of the lack of data to spread false claims and sow doubts about the veracity of the shooter’s donation.
Messages telling a story of identity spread quickly. “Thomas Crooks, who donated $15 to Act Blue, is a 69-year-old Democrat who lives in Pittsburgh and has the same calling as the Republican who shot Trump,” one X user falsely claimed.
In fact, Federal Election Commission records show that the Bethel Park street indexed in the $15 donation, intended for the Progressive Participation Project, is the same street and ZIP code where the shooter lived. But the municipality is mistakenly indexed as Pittsburgh, Bethel Park is outside the city limits of Pittsburgh. In screenshots of the FEC filing shared on social media, users have blurred Crooks’ email address, causing confusion.
Crooks made the donation on January 20, 2021, the same day President Biden, who would have been 17 at the time, was inaugurated. At that time he was not eligible to register as a Republican or vote in the 2020 election.
The donation was made in reaction to an email asking recipients if they planned to watch the inauguration, and Crooks unsubscribed from the group’s mailing list two years ago, a representative for the organization said in an email to CBS News. .
Learn here.
Trump won a private, in-person briefing Tuesday in Milwaukee from Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle regarding the failed assassination attempt, a source familiar with the meeting showed CBS.
The briefing took place at Trump’s hotel.
A drone and four magazines filled with the same ammunition used in the attack were among the items seized by investigators from the gunman’s vehicle after the shooting, according to three sources familiar with a police briefing with members of Congress on Wednesday.
Two explosive devices and a tactical vest with front and rear license plates were seized in his vehicle.
Another explosive device and 14 weapons were confiscated from him in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, sources told CBS News.
A rifle, a remote control, a Home Depot receipt and a number one cell phone were discovered in and around the gunman’s body, sources said.
—Ellis Kim, Chris Laible, Michael Kaplan of CBS News
The circle of relatives of Corey Comperatore, shot dead in the attack on Trump, released a Thursday in his honor after a local vigil and before his personal funeral.
“He was a local leader and veteran, a former firefighter leader and a committed Christian who discovered peace and joy through our church. He enjoyed and cared for us, his family,” she said, calling him a “happy father and husband. ” . “.
CBS Pittsburgh reported that Comperatore revered Wednesday with an emotional vigil.
“Where do you start when you’re asked to talk about someone who enjoys it so much and has shown love for their family?” His friend Dan Ritter asked during the vigil.
The public was invited to a procession through Freeport Community Park in Freeport, Pennsylvania, on Thursday afternoon. There will also be hours of public visitation, CBS Pittsburgh reported. His funeral on Friday will be private.
A federal law enforcement official said a new investigation shows an account on the gaming platform Steam that investigators thought belonged to Trump’s shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, but was not his account.
Previously, two sources said a post on that site read, “July 13 will be my first,” however, federal law enforcement officials said further investigation decided we were a fake account.
Read here.
Pennsylvania State Police notified the U. S. Secret Service of a suspicious user with a ground-mounted rangefinder at 5:51 p. m. m. local time Saturday, 20 minutes before the gunman opened fire, three resources familiar with a briefing given to lawmakers on Wednesday told CBS News.
According to sources, at 5:52 p. m. , the secret service informed the counter-sniper team present at the rally and the intervention agents on the ground about the suspect.
At 5:51 p. m. and 5:52 p. m. , local authorities knew the suspect had a firearm, according to a local law enforcement official and the Butler County Sheriff.
Trump stepped up to the level at 6:03 p. m. and the gunman opened fire at 6:11 p. m.
Read about the timeline here.
—Ellis Kim, Chris Laible, Michael Kaplan, Kerry Breen of CBS News
Numerous investigations have been opened into the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, accompanied by investigations into the crime itself and how law enforcement allowed it to happen.
But it’s clear that this is a confusing failure involving multiple missteps and at least nine other local, county and federal police divisions that were supposed to work together.
Authorities also warned of copycat attacks and more violence.
The Secret Service collaborates with local authorities when a president, political candidate or other top official visits the city, and Saturday’s demonstration was no exception.
But since the meeting, the day-to-day jobs designated and accepted by the agencies involved, as well as the way in which they have exercised them, have been questioned.
–CBS/AP
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said it would be up to local authorities to protect the building from where the guy who shot former President Donald Trump opened fire.
But CBS Pittsburgh reports that Butler County District Attorney Rich Goldinger said the Secret Service was told that local police may simply not be guilty of securing the AGR construction during the Trump rally.
“I don’t know who’s to blame for this building,” Goldinger said. “But someone was there. “
Butler Township manager Tom Knights told the station, “It was indicated that we also do not have the manpower to handle this task, due to the number of service officers. »
The Knights showed the message sent to the Secret Service two days before Trump’s rally.
Butler Township also told the company that its team may only handle traffic control. CBS Pittsburgh has learned that the Secret Service never responded to those messages.
“All I know is that our county police section has made it clear that we don’t have the necessary manpower,” Knights said.
–CBS Pittsburgh
Republican Senators Marsha Blackburn and John Barrasso posted a video on social media Wednesday showing several members of Congress confronting Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in a hospitality suite at the Republican National Convention on Wednesday evening. alleged security breaches that led to the assassination of former President Donald on Saturday. . Asset.
In the video posted through Blackburn, where Senator James Lankford is also present, Barrasso demands a “resignation or full explanation” from Cheatle.
Barrasso is referring to a senators’ telephone briefing via Cheatle that same day, after which several senators expressed frustration that the call contained no applicable information and was cut short after only a few questions were asked. authoritative.
“We didn’t get any of your answers,” Barrasso told Cheatle in the video.
After responding to a barrage of questions and complaints from senators, Cheatle responds in the video: “I don’t think this is the position to be having this discussion. “
She then leaves the suite as the senators run after her, following her down a hallway and proceeding to shout questions at her.
Earlier Wednesday, Cheatle agreed to testify before the House Oversight Committee. According to a spokesperson for the commission, the hearing would be held as scheduled on July 22.
Law enforcement resources on Wednesday night provided more details about the story of the search for the cellphone of Trump’s shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Sources in the past indicated that Crooks sought photographs of former President Donald Trump and President Biden before the shooting. On Wednesday night they said that in addition to the photographs, Crooks had researched Trump’s appearances and dates, as well as the Democratic National Convention.
Crooks also worked with FBI Director Christopher Wray, Attorney General Merrick Garland and members of the British royal family. Crooks has also worked with primary depressive disorder.
Sources also said that Crooks owned two mobile phones and had conducted the studies on his phones. They said there is still no indication of any motive, ideology or political opinions.
The criminals were killed by a Secret Service sniper shortly after shooting Trump, authorities said.
—Pat Milton, Andy Triay
A new video posted online shows former President Donald Trump arriving at Butler Memorial Hospital in Pennsylvania on Saturday, just minutes after surviving an assassination at a rally.
Video taken from inside the hospital shows Secret Service agents surrounding Trump’s van after it stopped. “There he is,” other people say in a waiting room as officials rush to the former president in the emergency room.
New major points related to the shooting at Trump’s rally continue to emerge.
The shooter at the rally in Pennsylvania, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, had three fully loaded magazines and what appeared to be a radio transmitter. More than an hour before the shooting, Crooks filmed wandering around the rally site.
Watch Meg Oliver on the latest trailers in the video below:
Old videos and photographs of former President Donald Trump recirculated online in the days after his assassination attempt to fuel false claims about his condition. Social media users falsely claimed the images “proved” that Trump was not injured or that he was playing golf less than 24 hours after the attack.
On Sunday, users shared photos and a video showing the former president playing golf at his own club in Bedminster, New Jersey. In one photo, Trump is seen with bandages over his ear, wearing green. In the video, he waves to those cheering him. spectators as he climbs into a golf cart.
But while Trump was in Bedminster on Sunday, the club closed, according to an email to club members received via Politico. The user who appears to have shared the video for the first time on Sunday admitted in the comments that it was not from that day.
The video recirculated on other platforms through users who claimed it was new, adding an X message from Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, who later said he discovered the video was old. Lee did not delete his original post, which has more than nine million views.
Learn here.
—Julia Ingram and Cait Bladt
The director of the United States Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, has agreed to testify before the House Oversight Committee as Republicans step up their efforts to investigate the assassination of former President Donald Trump.
The committee’s Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, subpoenaed Cheatle on Wednesday for testimony, requesting it before lawmakers on July 22.
In a letter sent to Comer on Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security presented Cheaille’s testimony on July 25, July 26 or the following week. The July 22 date contradicts his “operational and travel commitments. “But a spokesperson for the committee said the hearing will be held as scheduled on July 22, adding that “Americans demand and deserve answers” from Cheatle about the assassination attempt and the “serious failures” of the Secret Service.
The letter to Comer, received via CBS News, said the branch is “disappointed” that the committee “rushed to file a subpoena” because Secret Service officials have briefed members of Congress and their members in recent days.
“Director Cheatle welcomes you to testify before the committee,” the letter said.
Learn here.
—Nicole Sganga and Caitlin Yilek
Rally shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks searched online for images of former President Donald Trump and President Biden before Trump’s assassination on Saturday, sources said Wednesday.
He used his cell phone to search for the images. Investigators briefed lawmakers Wednesday afternoon, telling them Crooks was also looking for symptoms of depressive disorder, according to a source familiar with the information.
Scammers also filmed the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally at least once before Saturday’s shooting.
FBI Director Christopher Wray told Congress Wednesday that more than 200 interviews have been conducted so far in the investigation and more than 14,000 photographs have been reviewed. Law enforcement has not yet decided on the motive for the shooting.
The two men who were wounded in Saturday’s shooting at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania improved their condition Wednesday from critical to serious, hospital officials said.
James Copenhaver, 74, and David Dutch, 57, are patients at Allegheny General Hospital. Another man, Corey Comperatore, 50, was shot and killed at the demonstration.
Copenhaver, a resident of Moon Township, Pennsylvania, was shot twice: one in the leg and once in the abdomen, CBS Pittsburgh reported. Dutch, a Marine Corps veteran, was shot in the liver and chest.
The families of the two affected issued statements this week thanking first responders and medical groups for their help. They also thanked their followers for their support.
Moon Township Supervisor Al Quaye told CBS Pittsburgh on Monday that Copenhagen is “a great guy and this couldn’t have happened to him. “
A friend of Dutch’s, Dee Rakar, told the station, “He’s a glorious person, he loves to shoot and he loves to play. “
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has called for new leadership of the Secret Service in the wake of Saturday’s assassination of former President Donald Trump.
In a social media post, McConnell said “the country deserves answers and accountability” and that a replacement in leadership within the Secret Service would be “a step in that direction. “
House Speaker Mike Johnson has made it clear that he plans to seek the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.
Cheatle agreed Wednesday to testify before the House Oversight Committee. She and her company have come under close scrutiny since Saturday’s shooting.
President Biden appointed Cheatle as a director in 2022. She had spent 27 years at the company prior to her appointment and was part of Biden’s security team when he was vice president.
Local police told Secret Service before the rally that they did not have the manpower to position a patrol automobile out of doors the construction where the shooter would later position himself, Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger told CBS Pittsburgh.
Butler Township’s commanding officer told the Secret Service at a planning meeting about a week before the demonstration. News of this verbal exchange was first reported via the Washington Post.
Instead, local police planned to protect the construction with police forces of workers and tactical equipment, a law enforcement official said.
The building had three snipers from local tactical groups positioned inside, above the crowd. One of those shooters saw the shooter and photographed him. The local sniper also spotted the gunman through a rangefinder and promptly contacted his command post by radio, according to a local police officer.
–Nicole Sganga, Andy Sheehan
A CBS News investigation of video and satellite images shows that a tree may have prevented one of the sniper groups tasked with protecting Trump from seeing the gunman.
The tree, situated between the shooter and the sniper team closest to him, likely would have affected the team’s line of sight when the shooter climbed onto the roof from where he fired and when he opened fire.
That sniper team, on a rooftop over Trump’s right shoulder, did not fire the shot that killed the shooter, two federal law enforcement officials told CBS News. Another team of snipers, whose view was not obstructed through the tree, according to the investigation, killed The team was situated on the other side of the old pre-aspect and was directed in a different way in the first place, so the snipers had to reorient themselves before firing at the gunman, Charlie De Mar of CBS News reported.
Read here.
— With reporting by Erielle Delzer, Alex Clark, Rhona Tarrant
House Republicans are stepping up their efforts to investigate the assassination attempt and the obvious security lapses that allowed a gunman to attack the Republican presidential nominee.
Lawmakers on both sides have expressed fear about how the gunman was able to open fire. Republican anger has been directed at federal law enforcement officials, with sporadic calls for firm bosses to resign.
Speaker Mike Johnson announced Wednesday that he would create a special task force within the House to investigate the attack, saying in a social media post “we want answers to those shocking security failures. “
Johnson elaborated on Fox News, saying he plans to establish the task force on Monday and explaining that it will serve as a “precision strike,” capable of temporarily moving around some procedural hurdles that other avenues of inquiry face in Congress. be a bipartisan task force, made up of Republicans and Democrats, he said.
The Louisiana Republican said he spoke with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who said he had “no acceptable answers” about the attack. Johnson said he had also spoken to law enforcement officials and that “answers were available. “has made it clear that it plans to seek the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.
Meanwhile, the House Judiciary Committee announced that it would hold a hearing next week on the FBI’s investigation into the assassination attempt, and that FBI Director Christopher Wray will testify.
A series of hearings are scheduled for next week to reaffirm the view on the security flaw. Cheatle is scheduled to appear before the House Oversight Committee on July 22. And House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green has invited Mayorkas, Wray and Cheatle to testify before the committee on July 23.
Learn here.
Law enforcement recovered three loaded magazines from Saturday’s demonstration, sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News. The magazines belonged to the shooter, who used an AR-style rifle in the shooting.
It is known whether the magazines were discovered in the shooter’s frame or in his vehicle.
Investigators had in the past discovered two suspected improvised explosive devices in the shooter’s car, according to an FBI/DHS bulletin. Another was discovered in his house.
—Nicole Sganga and Rob Legare of CBS News
The House Judiciary Committee, led by Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, will hold a hearing next week to “examine the FBI’s investigation” into the assassination of Trump and what it called “continued politicization of the Office. “
FBI Director Christopher Wray will act as a witness, according to the hearing announcement.
It’s still unclear why the gunman opened fire on Trump at the crusade rally.
The FBI hacked into his phone, searched his computer, his home, and his car, and interviewed more than a hundred people in search of answers.
The shooter appears to have been a lonely sage with few friends, a likely sparse social media platform, and without any hint of strong political beliefs. He has been described through former classmates at Bethel Park High School as intelligent but aloof, seen dressed in headphones and preferring to sit alone during lunch, staring at his phone. Some said that other scholars mocked him for the clothes he wore, adding hunting costumes.
“He sat alone, didn’t communicate with anyone, didn’t even come up to strike up a conversation,” said Liam Campbell, 17. “He was a child,” but nothing about him seemed dangerous, he added. “Just a general user who didn’t seem to like communicating with people. “
Other classmates remembered the shooter in a more positive way. Jameson Myers, who graduated along with the shooter in 2022, told CBS News that the shooter was a “nice kid who never spoke ill of anyone. “
“I never thought he would be able to do anything that I’d seen him do over the last few days,” said Myers, who said he was friends with the shooter in elementary school. “When I talked to him, he seemed like a normal kid who didn’t want to be bullied. “
After graduating from high school, the shooter continued his studies at Allegheny County Community College, where he earned an associate’s degree with honors in engineering science in May. She also worked in a nursing home as a nutritional assistant.
—CBS/AP
On Tuesday night, on the floor of the Republican National Committee, vice presidential candidate J. D. Vance waved and shook hands with excited delegates as he made his way to his seat. It’s a stark contrast to Trump, who entered the room minutes later. Instead of shaking hands or waving to those gathered, he tapped the cameras and squeezed the wall opposite him, separated from supporters by a column of secret service agents.
The contrast underscores the new truth Trump faces after the attempt on his life. Trump’s crusade will also have to adapt to a new truth after he was on the verge of death or serious injury, and as authorities warn of the possibility of more political violence.
Trump campaign officials declined to comment on the increased security and how it might affect their interactions in the future.
“We do not comment on President Trump’s security services. All questions should be directed to the United States Secret Service,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said.
Donald Trump’s son, Eric Trump, said his father had no stitches and a “nice flesh wound” after the shooting.
The former president’s right ear was hit by gunfire, and when he made the impression at the Republican National Convention on Monday and Tuesday, he was wearing a giant bandage to cover his wound.
Speaking Wednesday morning with “CBS Mornings” co-anchor Tony Dokoupil from the conference hall in Milwaukee, Eric Trump said his father called the injury “the most ear pain I’ve ever had. “
“You know, he’s millimeters away from wasting his life. Array. . . I’m sure his ear doesn’t feel right,” Eric Trump said.
Learn more and watch the interview in the video below:
Lawmakers in both chambers of Congress are expected to get briefings from federal authorities on Wednesday afternoon, multiple resources familiar with the report told CBS News.
The House and Senate will be briefed this week by the Justice Department, the U. S. Secret Service and FBI officials while lawmakers are absent from Washington.
The separate briefings come amid an outcry condemning the attack by members of Congress, as well as plans to investigate the incident.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday at the Republican National Convention that the House would conduct an “immediate and thorough investigation. “
“Other Americans deserve to know the fact and we will take responsibility,” Johnson said.
Through his family, the shooter is a member of the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club, a shooting center located about 11 miles east of his hometown of Bethel Park. The club carries a variety of high-powered outdoor rifles with targets set at levels up to approximately 560 feet.
“We know very little about him,” club president Bill Sellitto told The Associated Press. “It is something terrible, terrible what happened on Saturday; It’s not what we’re talking about in any way. “
The gunman fired from the roof of a building about 410 feet from the rally’s main stage. The construction was just outside the barriers of a security perimeter set up on the property, CBS News previously reported.
–CBS/AP
The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general has opened an investigation into collection plans in Butler, Pennsylvania, as well as a review of the preparedness and operations of the Secret Service Array countersniper team.
The first investigation is indexed on the Office of Inspector General’s website as an “ongoing project” to compare the procedure implemented by the U. S. Secret Service. to secure the event. This most recent review aims to determine the extent to which the countersniper team is ready to “respond to threats on occasion involving designated individuals. “
Additional investigations are likely to be conducted as the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general examines other facets of the Secret Service’s systems and operations, the officials said.
These investigations are separate from the one announced Sunday by President Biden, when he said he was leading an independent review of security and events at the rally to detect what was wrong.
—Nicole Sganga and Aliza Chasan
The gunman who opened fire on former President Donald Trump on the roof of a building about 410 feet from where he was addressing the crowd. Security experts questioned why the building had not been included in the security perimeter set up for collection through secrecy. service.
Patrick Brosnan, a former New York police detective who heads a national intelligence and private security agency staffed by heads of state, told The Associated Press that a construction site near the site deserved to have been secured and monitored from the beginning.
“I find it elementary and rudimentary to offer a metal band or a circular band of coverage to the former president, who is completely exposed,” said Brosnan, who underwent Secret Service training and spoke at the press conference. Trump and his family circle on security issues.
Stan Kephart, a former police chief who occasionally worked in security for two former presidents, called the situation an “absolute and catastrophic failure” by the Secret Service to protect Trump. The company is ultimately to blame for the candidate’s safety. He’s stressed.
“You can’t blame others. They are under your control,” Kephart said.
Moments after the gunman opened fire, he was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper located on the stage rooftop.
–CBS/AP
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who served as White House press secretary for most of the Trump administration, invoked the divine in her speech at the Republican National Convention Tuesday night.
Speaking about Trump’s survival of Saturday’s assassination attempt, Sanders said that “not even an assassin’s bullet can stop it,” adding, “Almighty God intervened because United States is a country under God and in fact is not done with President Trump. “loud applause.
Iran on Wednesday rejected “malicious” accusations made through the US media implicating it in the assassination of former President Donald Trump on Saturday.
Tehran “firmly rejects any involvement in the recent armed attack on Trump,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said, while Iran’s project to the United Nations called allegations of a past plot to kill the former president “baseless and malicious. “
U. S. intelligence recently detected an Iranian plot against Trump, and the information was shared with the Secret Service ahead of Saturday’s event in Pennsylvania, two U. S. officials showed CBS News on Tuesday.
The National Security Council said it has been tracking Iranian threats against the former president for years and that there has been no known link between Saturday’s shooting and a foreign actor.
–CBS/AFP
The chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee plans to subpoena Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to testify about the assassination of former President Donald Trump, a committee spokeswoman said Tuesday.
Cheatle is expected to appear before committee members for an oversight hearing on July 22, Chairman James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, announced Monday. Although the Secret Service also agreed to brief lawmakers on Tuesday, the committee spokeswoman said, the Department of Homeland Security “took over communications” with the committee and verified the time of the briefing.
Cheaille’s work as head of the Secret Service came under scrutiny following the shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. One bystander, firefighter Corey Comperatore, was killed in the attack and two others, Marine Corps veteran David Dutch and James Copenhaver, were wounded.
The head of the House Homeland Security Panel, Rep. Mark Green, invited Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Chris Wray and Cheatle to testify before lawmakers on July 23.
Learn here.
CBS News investigation of video from the scene shows that two minutes passed between the first warnings about a gunman at the Trump rally and the first shot. CBS News’ Charlie De Mar and Nicole Sganga detail the main points in the video below.
House Speaker Mike Johnson confided to supporters on the second night of the Republican National Convention that the House will conduct an “immediate and thorough investigation” into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
“Everyone, hear me clearly and pay attention to me at home, and make no mistake: The House is conducting a swift and thorough investigation into these tragic events,” Johnson told the crowd gathered in Milwaukee. “This work has already begun. Other Americans deserve to know the fact, and we will want the culprits to be held accountable. ”
Calling the Republican Party a “law and order team,” Johnson said the rule of law in the country “is under serious threat. “
“We’ve reached a time in United States where basic things that we used to take for granted are being blatantly done like never before,” Johnson said. “We are now in the midst of a struggle between two absolutely different visions of who we are as Americans and what our country will look like. “
Corey Comperatore, the retired fire leader he killed Saturday at Trump’s rally, will host a public motorcade Thursday.
The public will watch the procession through Freeport Community Park in Freeport, Pennsylvania, followed by a public visitation and then a personal funeral.
At a security assembly on Tuesday, authorities said they expected a line to get out the door.
“At the end of the day, I think we need Corey,” Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe said of the 50-year-old former firefighter who died while protecting his family from gunfire.
Comperatore’s jacket still hangs outside the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Station, where he volunteered for decades and where his former colleagues now honor him for his commitment to his family and community.
Read here.
Former President Trump’s second son, Eric Trump, has called what led to his father’s assassination attempt “infuriating. “
Eric Trump spoke with Norah O’Donnell, host and editor of “CBS Evening News,” on Tuesday about his father’s recovery, upcoming protection and the long-term campaign.
The former president is dealing with “the biggest earache in the history of earaches,” his son said.
“You see the photo, right? The famous New York Times photo now, where you literally see the vapor trail from the bullet coming out of the back of his ear,” Eric Trump said. “It’s hard that things would have been so different. I can’t even believe what that would have meant for this country. “
Eric Trump also said it was “infuriating” that snipers and rallygoers spotted the shooter as early as 26 minutes before the first shots were fired.
Learn here.
Friends of David Dutch, the Navy veteran who was one of two other people seriously injured at Saturday’s crusade rally, described him as “wonderful” and “supportive. “
Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, was airlifted to Allegheny General Hospital after being shot at the demonstration.
“Nobody distinguishes him from David. We all know him from Jake,” Dee Rakar told CBS Pittsburgh’s KDKA. “He’s a glorious person, he loves to shoot and he loves to play. “
Rakar, who, like Dutch, is a member of the American Legion veterans’ group, described Dutch as a committed Navy veteran who enjoyed his country and visited the legion post in Lower Burrell, Pennsylvania, with his spouse.
Read here.
Butler County workers are facing threats and harassment following Saturday’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, according to a city official.
“It’s frustrating and unhappy because city workers had nothing to do with what happened at the agricultural fairgrounds,” City Councilman Donald Shearer told CBS Pittsburgh station KDKA.
Workers say they face hostile emails and threats blaming them for what happened in this small town of about 13,000 people.
Read here.
President Biden, speaking Tuesday at the NAACP National Convention in Las Vegas, once again condemned the violence that took place Saturday and called for a ban on weapons implicated in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
After noting that an AR-15 rifle had been used in the shooting, Biden said it was time to ban those weapons. “I did it once and I’ll do it again,” he said, referring to his 10th birthday. In 1994, Congress passed a two-year ban on firearms.
“We are grateful that he was not seriously injured,” Biden said of Trump. “We continue to pray for him and his family. “
Biden said it was a “tense time” for the country and that it was time for a vital national conversation. “Our politics are too hot,” he said, echoing his speech in the Oval Office on Sunday. He said that “we all have a duty to lower the temperature and condemn violence in all its forms. ”
“We must not forget that in the United States we are not enemies, we are friends. We are neighbors,” said the president. We will have to say with one voice that violence is not the solution. This is what unites us as a nation. That’s what I’m talking about”.
Allegheny Health Network’s chief medical officer said as much at a birthday party on Saturday when he started getting calls and texts to go to the hospital.
“We didn’t know what the scenario would be,” network director Dr. Brent Rau told CBS station KDKA Pittsburgh. “We were told there had been shots fired and there could be several victims. “
AHN doctors were already in Butler, Pennsylvania, treating tactical groups for possible injuries, but temporarily changed the subject when bullets began flying at the demonstration.
Minutes after the shooting, two helicopters arrived at the Butler Farm Show where the demonstration was being held. Helicopters flew the two injured to Allegheny General Hospital, more than 30 miles away, where they are still recovering.
Former President Donald Trump’s intelligence buildup in June was related to Iranian threats, an official familiar with the matter told CBS News on Tuesday.
CBS News has learned that the intelligence goes beyond conversations and reaches human-derived intelligence received through the United States.
CBS News had reported in the past that, according to several law enforcement officials, the Secret Service had beefed up Trump’s security in June after several requests from him for more assets.
Additional resources have been provided (counter-attack team personnel, counter-sniper team personnel, drones, and robot dogs). Some of those resources come from the Secret Service’s Nominee Operations Section.
Read here.
—Nicole Sganga contributed reporting.
The family of 74-year-old James Copenhaver, one of two other people seriously injured in the shooting at the rally, thanked the public Tuesday for their outpouring of support.
“Jim would like to give a special thank you to the first responders, doctors and hospital staff who provided him with the initial and ongoing care,” the Copenhagen circle of relatives said in a statement. “In addition, Jim would like to express his mind and prayers for the other victims, their families, and President Trump. He prays for a speedy recovery for all. “
James Copenhaver, of Moon Township, Pennsylvania, and David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, were hospitalized in still-solid condition at Allegheny General Hospital after being shot at the rally.
The Copenhagen family has called on the media, the public and their friends to respect the privacy of the Copenhagen family and their family from what they call “this horrific, stupid and unnecessary act of violence”.
As of Tuesday afternoon, he remained in solid condition, according to Allegheny Health Network.
Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe said he and other law enforcement officials were disappointed they were unable to prevent the shooting.
Slupe told CBS Pittsburgh KDKA’s Andy Sheehan that he was pleased to be able to participate in former President Donald Trump’s rally on Saturday as a law enforcement officer and as a supporter.
“I’ve had the chance to wear the uniform as a sheriff and as a guest,” Slupe said in an interview Monday. “I was sitting in the second row of the motorcycle carrier, a few steps from the walkway where the president was going to board. ”
When the shooting started, the first thing Slupe thought was that fireworks were going off. Earlier in the day, police responded to reports of fireworks. “In my mind, I’m like, ‘What fool is here shooting fireworks?'” Slupe recalled.
But shortly after the attack and the panic that followed, Slupe radioed doctors and an ambulance.
“I think all the law enforcement officials who were there, and the ones who weren’t, are upset. . . because we couldn’t have stopped this before it happened,” Slupe said. “I like President Trump. a great support. “
Slupe said he believed there were enough law enforcement officers present at the rally and ruled out the movements of those at the scene. “There will be a lot of investigation. There will be a lot of criticism,” Slupe said. “But at the end of the day, I know my deputies did a wonderful job. The police did a wonderful job. “
He added: “At the end of the day, we will all learn a lesson from this. “
U. S. intelligence recently detected an Iranian plot against former President Donald Trump, and the information was shared with the Secret Service ahead of Saturday’s event in Pennsylvania, two U. S. officials showed CBS News on Tuesday.
The National Security Council said it had been tracking Iranian threats against the former president for years and that no link was known between Saturday’s shooting and a foreign actor.
In reaction to the intelligence, the Secret Service said it was constantly receiving new information about potential threats, but was not commenting on expressed threats.
“The Secret Service and other agencies are receiving new information about potential threats and are taking steps to adjust their resources, if necessary,” Anthony Guglielmi, communications director for the United States Secret Service, said Tuesday.
After learning of the developing risk from Iran, the NSC contacted the Secret Service directly at a higher point to ensure the company continued to comply with the most recent reports, an official said. The Secret Service shared the data with Trump’s security services, and Trump’s crusade reported on the evolution of the risk.
In response, the Secret Service increased its resources and means to Trump through Saturday, the official said.
“These threats arise from Iran’s revenge for the assassination of Qassem Soleimani,” said NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson.
Trump ordered the assassination of Soleimani, a top Iranian military commander, in early 2020. The former president adopted a difficult approach to Iran during his term and withdrew from the nuclear deal negotiated with Iran by the Obama administration.
“We believe this is a national and national security matter of the highest priority,” Watson said, adding: “At this time, authorities have indicated that their investigation has not known any link between the shooter and any associates or co-conspirators. , foreign or national. ”
A Trump campaign spokesman declined to comment on the former president’s main security points.
—Nicole Sganga and Fin Gómez contributed reporting.
Trump and his new vice presidential running mate, JD Vance, will hold a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on July 20, a week after the former president’s assassination.
In a statement, Trump’s crusade mentioned the shooting, but said it would be the first appearance of the two men since they officially accepted the Republican nomination for president and vice president.
Both are expected to speak at the rally, which is scheduled to take place at the Van Andel Arena at five p. m. Y.
A sniper from a local tactical team deployed to assist the United States Secret Service at Trump’s rally took a photograph of the shooter and saw him peering through a rangefinder minutes before attempting to assassinate the former president, a local law enforcement officer with direct knowledge of the matter. times he told CBS News.
The sniper is one of three snipers, members of local tactical teams, stationed inside the building the gunman used in the attack, the officer said. The operational plan called for them to be stationed internally, looking out the windows toward the rally, scanning the crowd. Details of the 3 snipers were first reported through local media outlet BeaverCountian. com.
An inside sniper saw the gunman outside and looked up at the roof, observed the construction and disappeared, according to the officer who spoke to CBS News. The sniper watched the shooter as he returned to the building, sat down and watched. his phone. At this time, one of the local snipers took a picture of him.
The local sniper then observed the sniper watching through a rangefinder, a tool commonly used by snipers to determine distance to a target, and promptly radioed the command post, according to the local police officer. The local sniper also attempted to transmit the shooter’s photo to the chain of command.
Learn here.
–Nicole Sganga and Anna Schecter
There is “no threat or a credible threat” to the United States Capitol or its members after the assassination attempt, according to an opinion by the Senate sergeant-at-arms reviewed via CBS News.
The statement warned there would be a “heavier than general Capitol Police presence” in the coming weeks, adding “a buildup of K-9 raids, security checks and other security measures. ” proactive security.
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, a Tennessee Republican, invited several to testify at an Oversight Committee hearing examining Trump’s assassination attempt.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle were invited to testify before the committee on July 23.
“It is imperative that we work together to understand what happened and how Congress can work with departments and agencies to ensure this does not happen again,” Green said in a statement. “Successful oversight requires Congress to work closely with those officials as they testify publicly before the House Homeland Security Committee. The American people, and the Americans and families who get coverage services, deserve nothing less. “
Green previously sent a letter to Mayorkas about the security plan for the Trump rally site, communications such as Trump’s top security points covering resources and briefing materials used to brief President Biden on the “assassination” attempt.
Two law enforcement resources told CBS News that the gunman purchased a ladder at Home Depot before the shooting, but it’s unclear if he brought the ladder to the rally site Saturday. This was first reported via CNN.
Home Depot said in a statement: “We condemn the violence against former President Trump, and our thoughts are with him, with the others who suffered from Saturday’s horrific events, and with their families. “
—Nicole Sganga and Adam Yamaguchi
Authorities searched the home of the man who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump, putting a small Pennsylvania town at the height of the investigation.
An anonymous neighbor told CBS News Pittsburgh that he had to disconnect his phone after receiving 100 calls from around the world similar to the shooting, which killed a rally attendee and wounded Trump and two others.
A user noticed Monday night with a suitcase at the shooter’s house. The user did not respond to media inquiries and may not be identified promptly, CBS News Pittsburgh reported.
Some interactions of neighbors with the shooter and his family.
“I had a very nice verbal exchange with them,” said Alleghany County Councilman Dan Grzybek, who lives on the same street as the shooter and visited his campaign space. “I felt like they were great people. ”
Grzybek said he feared the gunman’s movements “could lead to political violence. ”
“I think other people are worried about conspiracy theorists coming into the realm and doing something that’s not smart,” he said.
Learn here.
Cellphone video taken on Saturday shows rally attendees pointing toward the shooter and alerting the government to his presence, a full two minutes before the 20-year-old shot Trump.
Less than 15 seconds before the shots were fired, other people can be seen fleeing the scene. Moments later, some in the crowd start yelling that the guy on the roof has a gun.
The shooter killed Corey Comperatore, a firefighter. He also injured two other people, but still Trump: David Dutch, a 57-year-old Marine Corps veteran, and 74-year-old James Copenhaver.
Seconds later, Crooks was shot dead by a Secret Service sniper.
Learn here.
The FBI said it conducted about 100 interviews with law enforcement officials, protest participants and other witnesses Monday afternoon as part of its investigation into the attack, a possible attempted domestic terrorism.
He also received numerous tips in the virtual media, according to a press release, although he identified a clear ideological motive.
The FBI believes the shooter, who was not known in the past, acted alone, with a gun purchased through his father.
Searches of the shooter’s home and vehicle have been completed, and the FBI and government are analyzing his electronic devices.
A former police chief who worked in occasional security for two former presidents said the shooting followed an “absolute and catastrophic failure” by the Secret Service to protect Trump. The company is ultimately to blame for the candidate’s safety, Kephart said.
“You can’t blame other people,” said Kephart, who is now a security consultant for police events. “They are under your control. “
At least a dozen police officers and sheriff’s deputies were helping the U. S. Secret Service and Pennsylvania State Police provide security for the rally.
President Biden said in an interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt that he hasn’t used the word “bullseye” to refer to how his crusade treats Trump, but he still needs to focus squarely on his opponent’s record and rhetoric as November approaches. Formation
“I talk about focusing on, look, the fact is, what I talked about at the time was that there was very little attention paid to Trump’s agenda,” Biden said Monday.
“It was for using that word,” the president said, but added: “I meant focus on him. Focus on what he’s doing. “
“I am not the one who said: I need to be a dictator from day one. I am not the one who refused to settle for the outcome of the election. I am not the one who said I would not settle for the outcome of the election. final results of the election automatically,” Mr. Biden said. “You can’t just love your country when you win. That’s why the emphasis on what he said and on his idea. “
Asked if he had done any “introspection” about his rhetoric, Biden responded: “How do you communicate the risk to democracy, which is real, when a president says the things he says? Because it might incite someone?”
“I have not engaged in this rhetoric,” Mr. Biden insisted. “Now, my opponent is engaging in this rhetoric. He says there will be a massacre if he loses. He talks about how he will forgive all the other people who are condemned. “Go to prison for what happened at the Capitol. “
Read here.
The Secret Service sniper who neutralized the gunman fired a circular and helped him through a spotter, according to two federal law enforcement officials with knowledge of the reaction to the shooting.
The sniper who took out the shooter was on the roof and to his left of Trump’s, the rightmost square on the map below.
The guy who killed Trump bought 50 rounds of ammunition at a gun shop in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, before arriving at the rally site, according to a Defense Department police bulletin. Homeland Security and FBI received via CBS News.
The FBI is investigating that the shooter “was motivated by violent extremist ideology or had ties to other conspirators or co-conspirators. “
Investigators discovered three improvised explosive devices after the shooting, adding two in the gunman’s vehicle parked near the protest site, according to the bulletin.
Both agencies have informed authorities about the option of violent retaliation after Saturday’s shooting, given the threats of online violence following the attack on Trump’s life.
“The reactions of some Americans to issues of political and social division have led to violence. . . and some Americans – adding some (domestic violent extremists) – will potentially view political and social tensions as an opportunity to use or publicize violence to promote their objective ideological interests,” the bulletin reads.
Police said the government discovered rudimentary bomb-making materials in the shooter’s home and in his vehicle. The FBI analyzes Quantico’s devices.
The assassination of former President Donald Trump had “an impact,” he told ABC News on Monday.
ABC News’ Jonathan Karl asked Trump if his life replaced him.
“I don’t like to think about it, but yes, I think it has an impact,” he said, adding that he hoped the bandage over his ear would be removed when he spoke at the Republican National Convention on Thursday.