The tongue has the power of life and death and those who love it will eat its fruit. ~ Proverbs 18:21

On July 13, 2024, DONALD J. TRUMP (78), the former president of the United States and the Republican Party's presumptive nominee in the 2024 presidential election, was shot in his right ear at a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania.

Trump was speaking to the audience when he was shot by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. Crooks fired eight rounds from an AR-15–style rifle from the roof of a nearby building outside the rally venue, killing Corey Comperatore, 50, in the audience[6] and critically injuring two other audience members. Crooks was subsequently killed by a Secret Service Counter Assault Team sniper.

After being shot, Trump took cover and was surrounded by Secret Service personnel before being helped to his feet by Secret Service with blood visible on his right ear and cheek. He pumped his fist in the air and mouthed "Fight! Fight! Fight!", before being escorted to his motorcade and taken to a hospital. He was released a few hours later in stable condition. The shooting is being investigated as an attempted assassination and as a potential domestic terrorist act.

Experts considered the shooting a sign of political polarization in the United States, and political figures called for a decrease in tensions.

The shooting evoked sympathy for Trump and was described as "shocking". A number of public figures have called for an increase in security for the major candidates in the election.

Source: Associated Press