This is a special edition of the PoliticsPA Playbook. We’re covering the reaction around the state to the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Butler, PA.

👂 What We’re Hearing. “As we wait to learn more from the investigations, I am mindful of just how painful and shocking this event is to so many of our fellow Pennsylvanians. I respectfully ask that we treat our fellow Americans with respect and join together to universally condemn the unacceptable violence we witnessed earlier today in Butler.” – Gov. Josh Shapiro

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Top Story

1. Trump Injured in Assassination Attempt

“What began as a jubilant rally Saturday for Donald Trump days before he becomes the official Republican presidential nominee ended in mere minutes with the former president bloodied and a suspected would-be assassin shot dead by the Secret Service.

There was also one spectator killed and two others who were critically injured in the shooting at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

The former president was showing off a chart of border crossing numbers when the shots, at least five, were fired. Trump was seen holding his ear and got down on the ground. Agents quickly created a shield around him. When he finally stood, his face bloodied, he pumped his fist to cheering supporters. Trump and his motorcade left the scene and he was checked into a medical facility.

The attack was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.” (AP)

Related

Shots Fired at Trump Rally In Butler, PA. “Shots were fired during a rally for former President Donald Trump on Saturday evening in Butler, Pa. It appeared that Trump may have been struck, as it was visible that his ear was covered in blood as Secret Service agents tried to rush him from the stage.” (PoliticsPA)

‘It’s Sick,’ Biden Says, Adding Americans Must Condemn Attack at Trump Rally. “President Joe Biden said Saturday that “everybody must condemn” the suspected assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, adding that he hoped to speak with his 2024 presidential rival soon.” (AP)

FBI Identifies Thomas Crooks of Bethel Park as the Suspect in Trump Assassination Attempt. “The FBI has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, as the suspected gunman involved in the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally Saturday in Butler County. In a news conference hours after the shooting, federal and state investigators said they didn’t believe there was another threat in addition to the shooter at the rally. The Pennsylvania State Police did not rule out that the shooter could have received assistance but said they had found no evidence so far.” (WESA)

Condemnation of Trump Rally Shooting Crosses Party Lines, And Blame Game And Calls For Probe Begin. “Republican and Democratic leaders, as well as some international friends and foes, are expressing shock following the news that gunfire had broken out during a Donald Trump campaign rally in Pennsylvania — and relief that the former president survived the attack” (AP)

State

2. Trump Injured In Attempted Assassination By Bethel Park Man; Attendee Killed, 2 Critically Wounded

“Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement that the suspected shooter “fired multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position outside of the rally venue” at the Butler Farm Show.

He said agents “neutralized the shooter, who is now deceased.”

FBI Pittsburgh early Sunday morning identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Related

Republicans Sat Front Row at Trump’s Rally — Then Witnessed Bloodshed. “They were in Butler, Pennsylvania, to see a rally. Instead, they became firsthand witnesses to a scene of “pandemonium” and bloodshed unlike any other presidential campaign event in decades. Dave McCormick, the Republican Senate hopeful in Pennsylvania, said there was a feel-good mood until the “pop, pop, pop” of gunfire. Rep. Daniel Meuser (R-Pa.) recounted immediately fixating on Trump after hearing two or three shots ring out. And Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) said a woman next to him was wounded, describing the shooting as resembling a “third world” country.” (POLITICO)

Meuser, From Stage Right, Describes Trump Shooting. “U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, seated with other Republican officials just off the stage of the rally where former President Donald J. Trump was shot in Butler Saturday night, said at first he wasn’t quite sure what was going on as shots started to ring out around him.” (PennLive)

Pennsylvania Lawmakers Respond to Attempt on Trump’s Life. “Pennsylvania lawmakers quickly and forcefully responded to the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pa., just 35 miles north of Pittsburgh.” (PoliticsPA)

Attendees at Trump’s Rally Saturday Walked Through Metal Detectors, Were Prohibited From Bringing Weapons. “Those who have gone to rallies for former president Donald Trump in the past said that security measures mirrored other rallies they had attended.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Chaos, Fear After Assassination Attempt at Trump Campaign Rally

“Less than six minutes into his speech Saturday, July 13, at the Butler Farm Show grounds, former President Donald Trump and three spectators were shot before the shooter was shot by the Secret Service.

Slippery Rock Mayor Jondavid Longo said he and his wife met with Trump before the speech and were sitting in the front row to the right of Trump when the shooting began. The shooting took place about 6:10 p.m.

“An individual who was about 15 to 20 feet behind us lost his life because of this maniac and the violence he wanted to do here against us and President Trump,” Longo said.” (Butler Eagle)

Related

Attendees Recount Shooting at Butler Trump Rally. “The first few gunshots rang out like fireworks. But when they continued, people in the crowd at the Butler Farm Show venue dropped to the ground: a mother and father told their children to crouch down. A young man hunched over in the grass. Behind him, a woman started to pray.” (Butler Eagle)

Witnesses Describe Chaos After Shooter Opens Fire At Donald Trump Rally in Butler. “David Abbot instantly laid on top of his wife, Miranda, when gunfire rang out just minutes into former President Donald Trump’s speech at a rally in Butler on Saturday. “I thought it was fireworks,” said Ms. Abbot, 32 of Canonsburg. “When I looked left, for us it was left, it looked like there was smoke coming out … I hesitated. He’s saying to get down. I’m like, ‘What?’”” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

PA Politicians Recall 1968 Assassinations, Call To Cool Rhetoric After Trump Is Shot At Rally. “As America gasped and grappled with an attempt on the life of former President Donald Trump, Lehigh Valley political leaders recalled the political violence of 1968.” (LehighValleyNews.com)

‘I Was So Scared’: Pennsylvania Residents React To Trump Rally Shooting. ““It was so surreal when we heard the sound of the bullets. It just went one, two, three, four, five, six. And then we’re looking around like, ‘firecrackers?’ And my nephew goes, ‘Get down, get down!’ And he just shoves us down. And I just wanted to crawl out of there on my stomach. I was so scared,” Suzanne Vincent said.” (NewsNation)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• There’s Only One Right Response to the Trump Shooting. (Helen Ubiñas)
• Trump Shooting Symptom of ‘Troubled’ US System. (Jill Stein)
• The Attack on Donald Trump Is Antithetical to America. (New York Times)
• What do we want to do, America? (Washington Post)
• The Shooting of Donald Trump. (Wall Street Journal)
• The Attempted Assassination of Trump Is Not Nearly As Surprising As It Should Be. (Jonathan Turley)
• America Is Not Ready For What Comes Next. (Zack Beauchamp)
• A Terrible New Era of Political Violence in America. (David A. Graham)

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