President Donald Trump has announced plans to release reports on the assassination attempts against him, pledging transparency about the attacks that nearly took his life during the 2024 presidential campaign.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump voiced frustration over the limited information made available to the public and vowed to disclose further details soon.
“It’s been seven months. Why do you think we don’t know more about the guy who shot you in the ear?” Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Thursday.
“We can no longer blame Biden for that one,” Trump responded. “He should have released that a long time ago. So they are giving me a report next week sometime and I do believe I’ll be releasing. I want to release the report, a lot of people have asked that question.”
Trump was the target of two assassination attempts in 2024. The first took place on July 13 at a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania, when 20-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire from an elevated position 400 feet away. Trump was grazed in the upper right ear, while one attendee was killed and two others sustained critical injuries.
Secret Service counter-snipers responded within seconds, killing Crooks on the scene. A bipartisan Senate report later determined that technical failures and security lapses contributed to the attack.
The second attempt occurred on September 15 at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. A Secret Service agent spotted suspect Ryan Wesley Routh armed with a rifle and concealed in the bushes near the golf course. The agent opened fire, prompting Routh to flee before being captured while attempting to drive away.
Routh has pleaded not guilty, and his preliminary trial is set for September 8, 2025.
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Trump highlighted unusual details about both suspects, especially regarding their access to foreign technology and their legal representation.
“You had one who had three apps, two of which were foreign supposedly and who has the biggest white shoe law firm in Pennsylvania, even though they don’t live in necessarily a white shoe area,” Trump said, referring to Crooks.
He raised additional questions about Routh, pointing out the number of phones he had.
Trump also commended the Secret Service for stopping a potential second shooting at his golf club, although he reiterated concerns about unresolved questions.
“On the second assassin… I have to tell you, Secret Service did a great job on that by spotting them. But on the second one, he had six cell phones. That’s a lot of cell phones. And a couple of them had some strange markings on them. So yeah, I want to find out,” the president said.
Trump made it clear he intends to share what he learns with the public, but he also left the possibility that some information may be withheld for security reasons.
“I would be willing to release it. I mean, maybe there’s a reason that we shouldn’t, so I don’t want to get too far ahead of my skis, but yeah, I would be very willing to release that. I’d like to see it,” he said.
Trump’s decision to release the report is expected to reignite scrutiny of both assassination attempts, particularly regarding potential security failures or underlying political motivations. The president has consistently criticized federal agencies, including the FBI, for what he views as a lack of transparency.