BUTLER, Pa. — Former President Donald Trump was injured Saturday in an assassination attempt after a gunman opened fire during his rally in Pennsylvania.
The shooter is dead and another two attendees were critically injured. Trump’s campaign said he was safe after being checked by medical personnel.
FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek said during a news conference late Saturday that the former president was the target of an assassination attempt but investigators have not yet identified a motive.
“This evening we’ve had what we’re calling an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump,” Rojek said.
Six minutes into his remarks, Trump reached for the side of his face as popping sounds rang out. Secret Service quickly huddled around the former president for several minutes. Trump raised a fist into the air as blood was streaming down his face before he was quickly escorted into a vehicle, walking off the stage with agents on all sides.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump confirmed he was fine and said the bullet “pierced the upper part of my right ear.”
“I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin,” Trump wrote. “Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.”
According to three senior U.S. officials, the shots were fired from outside the event and out of range of the U.S. Secret Service security perimeter.
President Joe Biden condemned the violence in a written statement and said he is happy the former president was safe.
“Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it,” he said.
Trump senior advisers and leaders of the Republican National Committee released a statement later Saturday night saying that the former president “looks forward to joining you all in Milwaukee as we proceed with our convention to nominate him to serve as the 47th President of the United States.”
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement on X that he was “calling on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to appear for a hearing.”
