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By Mandy Taheri
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On Sunday afternoon, President Joe Biden spoke to the nation about the importance of unity and announced increased security following an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
Saturday evening's shooting sparked debate about the efficiency and efficacy of the Secret Service and raised questions about the level of protection Trump and other presidential candidates, including third-party candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., receive. Some have even called for the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in light of the incident.
On Saturday evening, Trump was shot on stage during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, with a bullet hitting the upper part of his right ear. Two attendees were critically injured and one spectator, 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, was killed.
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The shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was neutralized by security agents after firing rounds off the roof of a nearby building. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has classified the shooting as an assassination attempt.
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The shooting comes as Trump and other high profile Republicans are preparing to attend the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee on Monday.
In two Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump confirmed he is still attending the convention, writing that while that he initially planned to delay his arrival, he decided he "cannot allow" a potential assassin to force him to change his plans. Trump added that he'd be leaving for Milwaukee on Sunday afternoon as planned.
Trump is set to accept the GOP party's nomination and announce his running mate at the convention.
In his Sunday speech**,** Biden announced that he directed the head of the Secret Service to "review all security measures, all security measures, for the Republican National Convention." The four-day RNC is estimated to bring upward of 50,000 delegates, politicians, and official guests.
Newsweek reached out to the Secret Service via email on Sunday afternoon.
The president expressed gratitude to the agents who risked their lives for the protection of Trump in yesterday's shooting and expressed his condolences to Comperatore's family. Biden emphasized that Trump "already receives a heightened level of security," because he's a former president and the presumed Republican nominee.
"I've been consistent in my direction of the Secret Service to provide him with every resource, capability, and protective measure necessary to ensure his continued safety," Biden said.
At a late-night news conference on Saturday, which the Secret Service did not attend, Pennsylvania State Police Lieutenant Colonel George Bivens said, "It is incredibly difficult to have a venue open to the public, and to secure that against any possible threat, against a very determined attacker."
Meanwhile, a rallygoer told the BBC that he noticed the shooter bear crawling on a building that was "50-feet away from us." The rallygoer said he was trying to get the police and the Secret Services' attention before the shooting.
"We're standing there. We're pointing at the guy crawling up the roof...we could clearly see him with a rifle," the rallygoer said.
Meanwhile, the Republican-led House Oversight Committee has launched an investigation into the shooting and asked Cheatle to testify on July 22.
In addition to calling for unity, Biden urged Americans on Sunday to not "make assumptions about his motives or affiliations, let the FBI do their job."
Updated 7/14/24 at 3:41 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include additional information.
Updated 7/14/24 at 2:59 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include additional information.
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