Secret Service agents shielded President Donald Trump after the shooting at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania last July.Evan Vucci/AP
One year ago today, a would-be assassin tried to kill Donald Trump at a presidential campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. While he survived, one of his supporters, 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, was fatally shot; two other rallygoers were also wounded but survived. The shooter, whose motive remains unclear, was rapidly killed by Secret Service countersnipers.
On Sunday, Trump’s loyal supporters piled onto the claim that his survival was all about divine intervention. “One year ago today, God miraculously spared the life of President Trump, and He is using him to lead our county back to greatness,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in a post on X, accompanied by a video featuring audio of himself praising Trump.
“The Miracle in Butler occurred one year ago today,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller wrote, declaring, “God saved our President so that he could save our country.”
“Americans will never forget that God was looking down on President Trump that fateful day and miraculously spared his life by a quarter of an inch,” Rep. Elise Stefanik posted. “God’s hand was on that field,” Rep. Andy Harris, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, said, adding, “President Trump’s life was spared and the MAGA movement was preserved for such a time as this.” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Sen. Bernie Moreno, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, disgraced ex-congressman George Santos, Rep. Nancy Mace, and others made similar comments.
The US government officially also got in on the act: “The bullet hit—but by the grace of God, he stood up. Bloodied. Unbowed. And he fought harder. July 13th is a reminder: we fight, we win, AND WE NEVER SURRENDER,” the White House account posted on X, accompanied by a 90-second video praising Trump’s career trajectory. Another post featured a photo of Trump with blood dripping down his face and pumping his fist in the air, accompanied by the quote: “I WAS SAVED BY GOD TO MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. I BELIEVE THAT.”
In other posts, the White House memorialized Comperatore, including through a video interview with his wife, Helen.
This is, of course, not the first time that Trump’s allies have used the assassination attempt for political purposes. That went into full effect right after the attack, at the 2024 Republican National Convention, as my colleague Mark Follman detailed:
When Trump was nominated at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee five days later, his brush with death was a major theme. Large images of the iconic news photo of him being pulled from the rally stage, his fist in the air and face streaked with blood, provided a backdrop on the main stage. Multiple speakers referred to his survival as the result of divine intervention. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and others lionized Trump, literally, and declared his survival and candidacy nothing short of a holy miracle.
In his acceptance speech, Trump, his right ear still bandaged, gave a dramatic, graphic account. “I said to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It can only be a bullet.’” He said he brought his hand down from his ear “covered with blood, just absolutely blood all over the place.” He then emphasized, “There was blood pouring everywhere, and yet in a certain way I felt very safe because I had God on my side.”
Meanwhile, on Saturday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) released a report produced at his request by the Government Accountability Office. The report said that senior Secret Service officials received information about a threat to Trump’s life 10 days before the Butler rally but failed to relay it to proper federal and local officials. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) also released a report on Sunday, compiled by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; it asserted that the Secret Service denied multiple requests for additional security to protect Trump during the campaign, among other allegations.
One year later, the Secret Service said the assassination attempt “represents an operational failure that the Secret Service will carry as a reminder of the critical importance of its zero-fail mission and the need for continuous improvement.” The agency also said it has implemented more than 20 of the recommendations made by Congressional oversight committees, and that another 16 are in progress. Six people, it said, faced disciplinary suspensions over the debacle in Butler.