SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
We're going to end this hour by walking you through some of the events of the last couple of days - and a warning that you will hear the sound of gunfire. Shortly after 6:00 on Saturday, a would-be assassin took aim at former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Penn.
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DONALD TRUMP: Take a look at what happened. Oh...
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DETROW: Eyewitnesses told the media they saw a man with a rifle and alerted police.
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UNIDENTIFIED RALLYGOER: I saw the guy move from roof to roof, told an officer that he was on the roof. And when I turned around to go back to where I was is when the gunshots started, and then it was just chaos.
DETROW: Trump and two others were injured, and one person was killed. That victim has been identified as Corey Comperatore. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro told reporters about Comperatore at a press conference on Sunday.
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JOSH SHAPIRO: Corey was a girl dad. Corey was a firefighter. Corey went to church every Sunday. Corey loved his community. And most especially, Corey loved his family. Corey was an avid supporter of the former president and was so excited to be there last night with him in the community.
DETROW: Secret Service shot and killed the gunman, who's been identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. He used an AR-15-style weapon from a nearby rooftop. Investigators believe the weapon was bought legally by his father, and law enforcement also found at least one explosive device in his vehicle. Crooks was a registered Republican but gave $15 to a progressive political action committee in 2021. Law enforcement has yet to identify a motive or an ideology.
Early Sunday morning, Trump posted on Truth Social, saying, quote, "thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening. We will fear not, but instead remain resilient in our faith and defiant in the face of wickedness. Our love goes out to the other victims and their families. We pray for the recovery of those who were wounded and hold in our hearts the memory of the citizen who was so horribly killed. In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand united and show our true character as Americans, remaining strong and determined and not allowing evil to win. I love our country and love you all and look forward to speaking to our great nation this week from Wisconsin."
Sunday afternoon, speaking from the Roosevelt Room at the White House, President Biden ordered an independent review of the national security measures in place at Trump's rally. Just hours after the attack, Biden had condemned the attempted assassination.
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PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: There's no place in America for this kind of violence. It's sick. It's sick. It's one of the reasons why we have to unite this country. We cannot allow for this to be happening. We cannot be like this. We cannot condone this.
DETROW: But despite the calls for civility, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, who's on Trump's short list of vice presidential picks, tweeted, quote, "today is not just some isolated incident. The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination." Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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