What to know
- U.S. officials learned of an Iranian plot to kill former President Donald Trump weeks before the attempted assassination in Butler, Pennsylvania, sources said.
- Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said that "the buck stops with me" and that the assassination attempt Saturday "should have never happened."
- Corey Comperatore, 50, a former chief of the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company, was killed in the shooting, and two other people — David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74 — were injured.
- The shooter has been identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. He was a member of a local gun club and worked as a dietary aide at a nursing facility.
- More than a dozen guns were found in a search of the Crooks family home, four senior officials told NBC News.
Man with gun in backpack arrested near RNC
A man who was arrested near a Republican National Convention security zone on Monday was concealing a firearm in a “tactical” backpack, police said.
The arrest took place about 1 p.m. on the 1200 block of North 11th Street in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Police Department said in a statement. Police determined the 21-year-old man did not have a permit to carry a concealed weapon, according to the department.
The location of the arrest was about two blocks outside the vehicle screening perimeter of the convention, which started Monday.
Law enforcement spotted the man, whose identity authorities had not released as of Tuesday night, and determined he looked suspicious, police said.
“Police initially observed the suspect looking suspicious, wearing a ski mask and a large tactical backpack in the street,” the department said.
Delegates wear fake bandages on ears 'in solidarity' with Trump
Delegates at the GOP's convention in Milwaukee took to wearing fake bandages on their ears as a show of solidarity with Trump.
During the convention, Trump has been wearing a large bandage on his ear, which was injured in the attempt on his life over the weekend.
House Speaker Mike Johnson: House 'will ensure accountability' for attack
Speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., promised to "ensure accountability" for the attack on Trump.
"Make no mistake, the House is conducting an immediate and through investigation of these tragic events, and that work has already begun," Johnson said. "The American people deserve to know the truth, and we will ensure accountability. I promise you that."
Trump campaign wasn't made aware of specific threats from Iran, source says
The Secret Service informed the Trump campaign in passing of a general uptick in threats against Trump, but the campaign was not made aware of any specific threats from an Iranian individual or group, a source familiar with the exchange told NBC News.
The U.S. obtained intelligence in recent weeks about an Iranian plot to assassinate Trump, which led the Secret Service to increase security around him.
There was no indication, however, that the plot had any link to Saturday’s assassination attempt. U.S. investigators say the evidence so far indicates the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, acted alone.
Three days after the shooting, Trump reveals little about his medical condition
Three days since a Pennsylvania shooter opened fire at a campaign rally and wounded Trump’s ear, the former president and his campaign have revealed next to nothing about his condition.
Trump appeared in public for the first time last night at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and wore an opaque bandage that covered most of his right ear.
A Trump adviser declined to answer specific questions today about his injury, telling NBC News that any statements about Trump’s health, his condition and the medical care related to his ear would come directly from him.
But Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, who was the White House’s top doctor during the Trump administration, told NBC News today that he had examined Trump personally and that Trump was “doing great.”
Jackson also said today on a podcast that Trump is missing the top part of his ear and that he will wear a bandage on it for the foreseeable future.
Though Trump appeared publicly yesterday as he was formally nominated to be the GOP presidential nominee and just a few hours after he officially tapped GOP Sen. JD Vance of Ohio to be his running mate, Trump has not given any on-camera remarks or interviews since the shooting.
All-senators meeting to address Trump assassination attempt
A phone meeting will be held with senators tomorrow about the shooting in Butler, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s office said.
The call will include briefings from the Justice Department, the Secret Service and the FBI, his office said.
Butler County officials focus on supporting victims' families
Officials in Butler County say they are focusing on helping the families of the victims of Saturday's shooting, in which one man was killed and two others were injured.
Leslie Osche, chairman of the Butler County Board of Commissioners, said in a statement that she wants answers but that "we are waiting for the AUTHORIZED Investigative bodies to complete their investigation. We will follow that and in the event the time calls for us to take any action or respond in any way, we will do so.”
In the meantime, Osche said, the board is focused on making mental health resources available for those who need it and supporting affected families, particularly the family of Corey Comperatore, who was killed.
“The Comperatore family is a shining example of Butler County families who serve their community, care for one another and are active in their church,” Osche said.
Osche said the attack highlighted the importance of “investing in our young people, young men especially.”
“We can’t afford to let them become disconnected or to use their intelligence for evil rather than good,” Osche said. “We cannot let this tear us apart right now.”
Iran’s mission to the U.N. denies assassination plot
Iran’s mission to the United Nations today denied allegations of an Iranian assassination plot against Trump.
“These accusations are unsubstantiated and malicious,” the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations said in a report from the state-run news agency IRNA.
The Biden administration obtained intelligence about the plot in recent weeks, and the information led the Secret Service to ramp up security around Trump, three U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter said.
Iran considers Trump a criminal, the report in IRNA said.
“Trump is a criminal who must be prosecuted and punished in a court of law for ordering the assassination of General Soleimani,” the mission said in the IRNA report. “Iran has chosen the legal path to bring him to justice.”
Family of shooting victim James Copenhaver says he suffered 'life-altering' injuries
The family of James Copenhaver, one of two victims wounded in the rally shooting, said in a statement that the 74-year-old is recovering from "life-altering" injuries and asked for privacy.
In the statement, Copenhaver thanked first responders, medics and hospital staff for their care and expressed his “thoughts and prayers” for the other victims of the attack, including Trump.
Copenhaver directed further questions to his attorney.
“The Copenhaver family would like to thank you for your continued thoughts, prayers, and support as Jim and his family recover from this horrible, senseless, and unnecessary act of violence,” the statement concluded.
Eric Trump says investigators 'better get to bottom' of security breakdown
In an interview with NBC News’ Katy Tur, Eric Trump called for the Secret Service to “get to the bottom” of the security breakdown that allowed the gunman to climb to an unsecured rooftop.
“These are some of the finest people you’ll ever meet and they would have taken a bullet for him, and they almost did that day — but there was some breakdown outside of his ecosystem,” Eric Trump said. “There was some breakdown and they better get to the bottom of it.”
Thomas Matthew Crooks shot at Trump from the roof of a building about 148 yards away from the stage where the former president was leading a rally. Crooks was outside the Secret Service’s security perimeter, making the building's security the primary responsibility of local law enforcement.
Local police officers notified the former president’s Secret Service detail that they were looking for a suspicious person in the area before Crooks took aim at Trump, according to a U.S. official.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said in an interview with ABC News that only “a short period of time” would have passed between such a warning and the shooting.