Live Election Updates: Trump ‘Safe’ After What Sounded Like Gunshots at Rally
The former president appeared to have blood on his face as he was rushed from the stage by the Secret Service following a series of loud pops during a rally in Pennsylvania. A spokesman for the Secret Service said Mr. Trump was safe after “an incident.”
Former President Donald J. Trump was escorted off the stage by Secret Service agents and into his motorcade just minutes into his rally on Saturday in Butler, Pa., after a series of pops that sounded like gunshots rang out.
The exact source of the noises was unclear, but Mr. Trump’s face and ear were bloodied as he was rushed off the stage.
Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, a key surrogate of the Biden campaign, said in a statement that “Violence has NO place in our democracy. My thoughts are with President Trump and everyone impacted at the rally today.”
Some people who were in the crowd described the evacuation of the rally as a logistical nightmare. “Right now, they’re trying to evacuate 50,000 people on one country road,” James E. Hulings, the Butler County Republican Committee chairman, told me by phone from his car. He said he was still stuck in a parking area around 7 p.m. Eastern time. “It’s such a tragedy. So many people were crying. We waited here since 10:30 this morning.”
Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and the Republican leader in the Senate, said in a statement: “Tonight, all Americans are grateful that President Trump appears to be fine after a despicable attack on a peaceful rally. Violence has no place in our politics. We appreciate the swift work of the Secret Service and other law enforcement.”
Representative Steve Scalise, Republican of Louisiana and the House majority leader, says he is “praying for President Donald Trump. There is never any place for political violence.” Mr. Scalise was shot and injured in 2017 at a congressional baseball game practice session in the Washington, D.C., area.
Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the Democratic leader, said in a statement: “My thoughts and prayers are with former President Trump. I am thankful for the decisive law enforcement response. America is a democracy. Political violence of any kind is never acceptable.”
![Simon J. Levien](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2024/06/27/reader-center/author-simon-j-levien/author-simon-j-levien-thumbLarge.png?quality=75&auto=webp)
A medical helicoper arrived about 19 minutes ago and has just left, headed south, likely to the medical center in Pittsburgh.
Elon Musk, the tech billionaire, publicly endorsed Donald Trump in a statement minutes after the shooting. “I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” he wrote on X.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Democrat of Pennsylvania, said in a statement that he had been “briefed on the situation” and that the state police were on the scene working with federal partners. “Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable,” Shapiro said. “It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, a harsh critic of Donald J. Trump who was the target of a kidnapping plot, condemned the violence on Saturday. “There is no place for political violence in this country, period,” she wrote on X. “This is not how we solve our differences.”
No comments:
Post a Comment