Trump pumping hist fist into the air saying, “Fight. Fight. Fight.” (Courtesy of news.wttw.com)

Former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a Trump rally on July 13th in Butler, Pennsylvania. According to officials, the gunman, Thomas Crooks, fired eight shots, striking four individuals and killing one. Fortunately, the bullet merely grazed President Trump, leaving him with a bleeding ear, ultimately unharmed. Seconds later, the Secret Service swarmed in to protect him. Their attempt to cover him was so swift it knocked Trump’s shoes off. The Secret Service did not stop the cover until the shooter was confirmed dead. In a moment of shock and triumph, the former president stood up, raising his fist to the crowd to show strength and unity for the United States of America. 

Thomas Crooks was a 20-year-old man from Bethel Park, PA, a town over an hour away from Butler. He graduated from high school and community college and planned to attend a university this fall. There is no clear reason Crooks carried out this attack, and officials say he acted alone. The shots were fired with a semi-automatic AR rifle that was legally purchased under his father’s name. Furthermore, there were numerous suspicious devices found in Crook’s car, including explosives. 

Corey Comperatore, a true hero, was shot and killed by the gunman while protecting his family. Comperatore, 50, was standing in the crowd with thousands of others and dove in front of the gunfire to shield his wife and daughter. He was a retired firefighter from Buffalo Township. Friends and family of the victim describe how great of a man he was, always willing to put others before himself. 

Trump being helped after the attack. (Courtesy of news.wttw.com)

Despite the attempt only solidifying Trump’s support just days before the Republican National Convention, bigger questions have come into play: How did this happen? What led to this? How can this be prevented? 

Back when President Trump was first running for President, the “center-left” mainstream media launched a smear campaign, as most would, against their opponents, but the campaign quickly turned into something more. For the past eight years, America has watched as that smear campaign evolved into a death wish.

Just days before the assassination attempt, President Biden said that “it’s time to put Trump in the bullseye.” Tweet after tweet, quotes like “Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are a threat to the very soul of this country” and others are plastered all over the President’s X account. Besides the President, other politicians such as former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, referred to Trump as a “dangerous and evil [person].”

Furthermore, how many times has Trump been compared to Hitler? So many times that the term “Nazi” no longer holds any meaning. Anyone can be called a Nazi, and what does that mean? Nowadays, a Nazi seems to be anyone of an opposing view that is a threat to current power. There seems no longer to be a definitive ‘good’ and ‘bad’ unless the definition involves ‘Evil’ and ‘Trump.’

When a country spends eight years manipulating the past to fit its narrative for the future, the result is a perverse society, and that is what we are living in. The shooting was more than an attack; it was a reflection of the state of the country today. 

Another question raised is how did the actual shooting occur? Only 150 meters away from the stage was a skinny, 20-year-old with an AR-style rifle. Well, how far is 150 meters? According to AP News, the distance of the shooter from the President was “astonishingly close.” Furthermore, the sniper who eventually killed the attacker allegedly had an open view of him the entire time. If he had a clear view of the sniper, why did it take eight shots before a retaliation? How come, for lack of a better term, an Average Joe with absolutely zero military experience was able to scale a building and shoot the President without alerting a single member of the Secret Service?  When a witness came to a police officer about the shooter, why didn’t the officer follow up and go after them? When shots were fired, why did the (what seems to be) “DEI-hire” guard (a 5’4” woman barely tall enough to reach Trump’s chest) struggle to handle her gun that she is supposed to know like the back of her hand? 

Hopefully all of these questions will soon be answered pending an investigation by none other than our competent Secret Service, ordered by President Biden, following the shooting.