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CNN Live Event/Special
FBI Now Taking Lead In Trump Rally Shooting Investigation; Trump Rally Shooting Being Investigated As An Attempted Assassination; Secret Service: One Rally Attendee Dead, Two Critically Injured; Suspected Shooter At Trump Rally Dead; Trump Thanks Secret Service For "Rapid Response" To Shooting; Biden Returning To WH After Assassination Attempt At Trump Rally. Aired 11p-12a ET
Aired July 13, 2024 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[23:00:00]
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: -- presumably line of sight access to the stage was pretty open and available to the public. I'm sure that's something that. The Secret Service will be kind of reviewing as they go through this to determine whether they may -- have should have done things differently in that regard.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Right. I'm sure they're going to look at that to make sure that they learn from this horrible, horrible situation to make sure it doesn't happen.
Again, former Secret Service agent Jonathan Wackrow is with us. So, Jonathan, as you look at what we know right now, that the shooter was a top, the rooftop that was basically overlooking where Trump was speaking from -- from this rally right there. And no one either prevented that shooter from showing up there or stopped him from shooting. It looks like there was a major blunder somewhere along the line. I wonder if you -- you agree.
JONATHAN WACKROW, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Wolf, anytime you have a -- a shooter within close proximity that's at an elevated position that gives them an advantage. And that is something that, you know, will come out during this investigation. The Secret Service, along with the FBI and other investigators need to understand how did this individual, you know, you'll get to that location.
You know, once he was you know, up on that elevated position and -- and started firing, it -- it did appear, you know, just from the sound that in -- in -- in -- from some eyewitness reports that law enforcement, the Secret Service, the counter sniper team did engage in neutralize the threat almost immediately.
But we have to -- we have to understand what were the precipitating actions that this shooter took. How were they able to walk with, you know, presumably a long gun to get up onto a building, to get into a position to launch this attack absent of, you know, local law enforcement and, you know, Secret Service agents not, you know, seeing that.
Now I will say that you know, this -- this building does appear to be outside of the secure perimeter. So, this is an area. This is a long- range threat. The Secret Service is always concerned about those long- range threats. That's why they have the tactical asset of the counter sniper team. But there are a lot of questions that need to be asked. One of which is, was there any type of pre attack surveillance?
You have to remember, Wolf, as we're looking at the map, the overview of this site, what we're not gaining is what type of environmental manipulation did the Secret Service and, you know, the security plan play with, you know, to block line of sight. Typically, you'll see large blocking vehicles, you can see like aerial lights, media equipment. When I was a Secret Service agent, I love to take big satellite trucks and use those media trucks to block line of sight.
So, it was -- was this attacker looking at the build out of the security plan over time, found a vulnerability and then was able to launch this attack. All of this Wolf will come out during the investigation in the forthcoming days.
BLITZER: All right, Jonathan Wackrow and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, to both of you, thank you very, very much.
Anderson?
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: It is just past 11:00 p.m. in the wake of an assassination attempt on Donald Trump at his final pre-convention rally in western Pennsylvania. The gunman is dead, a rally spectator is also dead, two others we now know are critically wounded.
The former president grazed in the ear, but OK. But this is new video from the scene, I want you to see and hear it all.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I took (INAUDIBLE). And look what happened to our country. Probably 20 million people. And you know that's a little bit --
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's got a gun!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's on top of the roof. Don't go over there. He's on the roof, buddy.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's dead. I just seen his hair is what they shot him in the head.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What if they hit anybody over there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But he called the show (ph). UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He number of shots.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that was us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, that was him. The first three shots were him.
(OFF-MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's on the roof, right there.
(OFF-MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's right there on you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our (INAUDIBLE) down there.
(OFF-MIC)
(CROSSTALK)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[23:05:13]
BLITZER: And there is also a new video of the U.S. Secret Service counter sniper who apparently took the gunman out on it. You will first hear the former president speaking, then the shots that hit him, and then the shot that apparently killed the sniper.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And you know, that's a little bit old --
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS (in unison): Boo.
TRUMP: -- that chart. That chart's a couple of months old. And if you want to really see something that's said, take a look at what happened --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: And this is the same video in slow motion. You can see the Secret Service counter sniper's weapon move and the agent's head pick up. Now here's how it all looked on stage from the moment of the first shots to when former President Trump was taken from the stage to a local hospital.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: Oh, that's a little bit old, that chart. That chart's a couple of months old. And if you want to really see something that's said, take a look at what happened --
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS (in unison): Get down, get down, get down, get down.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS (in unison): Get down, get down, get down.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Move to the spare. Move to the spare.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold, hold. When you're ready (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Move. Move.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) to the spare.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Move to the spare.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Spare the (INAUDIBLE), spare the (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you ready?
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we good?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shooter's down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shooter's down. Are we good to move?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are we clear.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Clear.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Clear. Come on.
TRUMP: Let me get my shoe. Let me get my shoe.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got you, sorry, I got you.
TRUMP: Let me get my shoes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold down your head (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, we got to move to the bus.
TRUMP: Let me get my shoes (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Watch out.
TRUMP: Wait, wait.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody, go move.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS (in unison): USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: President Biden made a brief statement tonight decrying what happened. He also spoke to Mr. Trump and is returning to the White House. This is Air Force One, the smaller version waiting at Dover Air Force Base. The FBI is now in charge of the investigation.
CNN's Kaitlan Collins and Abby Phillip are here with me in New York.
Kaitlan, I know you've been talking to people throughout the night. What are you hearing now?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR, THE SOURCE: Yes, obviously Donald Trump immediately after you see that moment on stage where the agent grabbed his hat, his shoe was left on stage according to the Washington Post. You can see the bloody towel. He was taken to Butler Memorial Hospital, not far from where he's standing right there on stage.
That is where he was treated by doctors and seen obviously, he later posted and confirmed that the bullet did indeed graze his ear and he immediately felt the blood. You can see it in that video that you -- you just showed there. What we're told is that he's been on the phone with immediate family members. A lot of people have not been able to get through to him that have been trying to talk to him. He's been surrounded by obviously his campaign team and the entire apparatus that really had spent today focused on what tomorrow is going to look like in this week in Milwaukee. He is still scheduled to go to the Republican convention as it was planned. Nothing has changed based on what we've heard so far.
It remains to be seen if we'll actually hear from him on camera. You would imagine he would want to. I talked to people who were there. They said that you see how Trump was exiting the stage. He mouthed the word fight to his supporters a few times. He had a similarly kind of defiant look on his face as he got into his motorcade and did that one more time before he was taken to the hospital.
He did speak to President Biden tonight. President Biden had been trying to get in touch with him and had only spoken to his doctors, so far. But just to -- to look back on this moment when you -- when you talk to people who know Donald Trump and having covered him since he was a candidate before he became president the first time. Every president fears for their security, every presidential candidate does, who gets Secret Service protection. Donald Trump has had it for almost a decade now, if you can believe it, since November 2015. He loves his Secret Service agents, they feel similarly about him. He's long feared, though, an attempt on his life. He has always been hyper fixated on security and preparations and what it looks like.
[23:10:01]
I mean, you go into a Trump rally, not many politicians have events like this, where there are this many people who go in. I've been to -- dozens of them, our camera crews go and set up ahead of time. Then they have to leave, the Secret Service sweeps, the entire area, dogs, everything. They looked at the bleachers, they look at the seats, and then you have to exit the facility and then re-enter. You go through magnetometers. The Secret Service is there. And I think that has really been one of the biggest takeaways that I've heard from -- from people tonight is asking how this could happen, all of these people who have been at a Trump rally. And the idea that a shooter could be on a rooftop within the line of sight of the former president and presumptive Republican nominee has stunned so many of them.
And we talk a lot about the -- the frivolous investigations that happened on Capitol Hill House Speaker Mike Johnson, the Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, James Comer, both making clear tonight that they want to hear from the Secret Service on what went wrong.
COOPER: I mean, you look at the location. You look at that map. I -- I've heard some reports, it's about 150 yards. I -- that's just read that. But I don't know if that's confirmed. But I mean, it's --
ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSNIGHT WITH ABBY PHILLIP: Yes.
COOPER: -- it's incredible to think that that rooftop wasn't secured.
COLLINS: Can I say one more thing? Just on the timeline here, he was about 10 minutes into his remarks. One thing that they have done at his rallies this time around that they did not do when he was in the White House previously is they put up these huge screens on each side of him where he can pull up charts or polls or whatever. He was in the middle. That's what he's looking at right there while he's looking to his right. He was asking his team to put a chart up.
And, I mean, the fact that and just matter here, I think says a lot. The fact that he had turned his head and was looking at this chart that was on his right side. Sorry, Abby.
PHILLIP: Yes, no, I mean, I think that this is one of those situations where everything will change after this. I mean, we've been warning, frankly, for years about the rising threat of political violence. We're at that moment. It is right now. And for all of the candidates for President Biden, for former President Trump, I'm seeing a lot of conversation right now about whether President Biden will authorize RFK Jr. to have Secret Service protection, seeing calls from Democrats and Republicans, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, the Texas Senator Ted Cruz, both of them saying tonight that he should.
Everything will change from this point forward. Because this is a representation of something happening in this country that is now out of control. It's already gone past that point. The danger is always there for presidential candidates. But when you've -- when you've crossed the line, I think it becomes incredibly apparent that that you can't take any more chances.
And I think we'll see the RNC this week. I mean, they've said everything is going to go as planned. But I cannot imagine that right now, everything is not being re-evaluated about the scope and the scale of the security around that event. And not to mention, former President Trump also has to announce his Vice President. That is an announcement that's going to happen, and whoever that person is, is going to be immediately enveloped by an enormous amount of security. That was already going to happen. It's going to be, I think, exacerbated now.
COOPER: And -- and we have seen political violence before after Ronald Reagan's attempted assassination, Steve Scalise, the intruder wanted to kill Nancy Pelosi or do something to Nancy Pelosi who ended up almost killing her -- her husband.
There were people who made fun of the Pelosi's after that attack on -- on one side of the political aisle. It remains to be seen what the political response to this is by both Democrats and by, by Republicans.
PHILLIP: I do think there's fear, though, Anderson, that I mean, obviously on both sides about what the political implications are, but we can't get ahead of ourselves here. I mean, we do not know how this is all going to play out on the minds of voters. I will say, though, that Democrats have been making this argument that, you know, democracy is on the line and Republicans are now saying that that is the rhetoric that that incited this. We have no idea. We don't know who this person is, what their motives are.
But on all sides, I mean, I think there should be probably a reevaluation of all the rhetoric of the tone of this campaign going forward will, there should be, will there be, I'm not so sure because I think both sides are going to try to find --
COOPER: Seems (INAUDIBLE).
PHILLIP: -- yes, they're going to find ways to use this to their political advantage and the stakes really gotten even higher.
COLLINS: But I will say, you know, we've talked so much about the top of the ticket and what that looks like and who's the nominee and what that looks like. President Biden and President Trump had a phone call tonight. I mean, they -- that has never happened between the two of them.
And so obviously they've been on debate stages. We've all seen the political moments. But the fact that they did have that phone call tonight and in Donald Trump's statement tonight, he offered his condolences to the rally goer who was killed tonight and to the other person who was critically injured. We'd now learned a second person was also critically injured.
[23:15:04]
And obviously you saw President Biden come out pretty quickly early on before he had left for Hobart to come out and say that he had tried to get in touch with -- with Trump. Those are moments that are also, I think, important for as we look at what this political context is, regardless of what others are saying on Twitter and online and in the coming days, it is a moment to see them at least having that phone call.
PHILLIP: And just as you're saying that, I mean, you know, I think about this event. I think about January 6th and the thing that -- that continues to happen is that when political violence happens, it's innocent people, were regular people who are impacted. There were -- there was someone killed today who just was going to a political rally. Two people who are being described as critically injured.
There are people who were there -- with their children, their families, their wives, their -- their husbands. This is the consequence of all of this. And -- and the target might have been former President Trump, but just regular people who are trying to exercise their rights, politically, are losing their lives in moments like this, and it's just so sobering for us to think about tonight.
COOPER: Yes.
Tim Naftali, presidential historian. I mean I don't know that it will change anything about rhetoric, because already people on various sides are, you know, seeing this differently.
TIMOTHY NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, one -- one would hope, you know, that in a moment like this is one hopes for some good, something good to come out of it, right?
And what would be good in a dark night like this is for opinion makers -- political opinion makers to recognize that the two parties may disagree, but we're all part of the same political community, and we bear a responsibility for setting an example so that we do not trigger people into attacking our democracy by trying to eliminate an option, a choice.
And so, one can only hope that, not just tonight, but tomorrow, and during the two conventions, that we see a recognition that enough is enough, the rhetoric's too heated, the pot is on the stove, and the water is boiling, we have to dial it down.
COOPER: Wolf, let's go back to you.
BLITZER: Good point indeed, from Tim Naftali. Let's hope that they can dial it down. That rhetoric is very, very heated.
Anderson, I want to go to CNN's Evan Perez right now. He's got some new reporting on the deceased gunman. What are you learning, Evan?
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the work now that the FBI is doing is to verify the identity of this person. They believe they -- they know who it is. The, one of the questions I think everybody, that is on everyone's mind is obviously we're -- we're -- we're now at about almost five hours after this event and we don't yet have an official name, a -- a name from law enforcement, of the name of the person who attempted from what we can tell, an attempted assassination of the former president.
And so, that is one of the questions right now that is obviously on everyone's mind. What we're told is that the -- the -- the -- the alleged shooter -- the suspected shooter wasn't carrying identification on them. And so that's adding to some of the extra work that, that law enforcement has to do, to try to verify and make sure they know who this person is.
And, and of course the -- the work that now begins to -- to try to identify what the motivation is. I know, you know, I think for people online, sometimes everyone wants to jump to the conclusions of what they think they see based on what the videos are showing and so on. But law enforcement moves a little more methodically. They need to know, they need to preserve the evidence and they also need to get search warrants. There's a lot of work going on behind the scenes by the FBI to try to make sure they understand exactly what happened here. And -- and -- and to explain to the public exactly how this went down. And so that's the work that's going on behind the scenes.
Again, we're told right now they know who this person is or they believe they know who this person is that attempted to fire those shots against, you know, at the former president at that rally. But the work being done now is to make sure they, you know, everything to make sure that they know exactly what they know.
Wolf?
BLITZER: Evan, stand by. We'll get back to you. I want to go to John Miller right now. He's got getting some more information as well. What are you learning, John?
JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, we are told that the FBI has the identity what they believe to be the identity of the suspected shooter. He's a young man, approximately 20 years old, who apparently grew up and lives in a Pennsylvania town, not terribly far away. And they are in the process of going through that.
[23:20:03]
We are not going to be going with any further information about him until they are finished confirming that they have the right suspect or put that name out. But they're very confident that they have identified who he is as a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man.
BLITZER: Let's we'll wait and see. Presumably it won't take very long for them to make public the name of this individual. And some more information about this individual.
I thought it was interesting, John, and I want to get your reaction. The Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, just issued a statement vowing there will be a, what he calls, a full investigation. A full investigation of this assassination attempt in the House of Representatives. He says this, the American people deserve to know the truth. We will have Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and other appropriate officials from the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI appear for a hearing before our committee ASAP.
I know there's going to be a full investigation by the FBI as well. So, give us a sense. Who goes first, the FBI, the House of Representatives? How do you see this unfolding?
MILLER: Well, speaking as a former member of law enforcement to drag this at an early stage into the political arena as is being suggested by dragging the Secret Service director before a House committee, even as the facts are still being gathered, while the criminal matter is still at its earliest stages before the comprehensive investigation has been launched into what happened, strikes me as pure politics and the kind of thing that actually interferes with the -- more important job of getting the real answers, capturing it as evidence that is presentable and -- and collected the right way without -- without the -- without the color of politics affecting it.
BLITZER: Yes, they need a full-scale investigation, but they clearly don't need it to be political. Good point indeed, John. Thank you very, very much.
Anderson, back to you.
COOPER: Wolf, as you know, three former presidents have weighed in tonight. This from former President Clinton. I'm quoting, violence has no place in America, especially in our political process. Hillary and I are thankful that President Trump is safe, heartbroken for all those affected by the attack at today's rally in Pennsylvania, and grateful for the swift action of the U.S. Secret Service.
From former President George W. Bush, quoting, Laura and I are grateful that President Trump is safe following the cowardly attack on his life. And we commend the men and women of the Secret Service for their speedy response.
And this from former President Obama, there is absolutely no place for political violence in our democracy. Although we don't yet know exactly what happened, we should all be relieved that former President Trump wasn't seriously hurt and used this moment to recommit ourselves to civility and respect in our politics. Michelle and I wishing him a quick recovery.
Back with Scott Jennings, Van Jones and Tim Naftali.
Van, we haven't heard from you this evening. What are your thoughts right now?
VAN JONES, CNN HOST: I'm so glad that Donald Trump is alive. I'm so glad. I'm so glad he's alive. I'm so glad his family is not having to bury a father and a grandfather.
And this is a moment that I think people defeat him, remind ourselves, you can defeat him with ballots. You don't need bullets. You don't need vitriol. You don't need any of this stuff. This is a time when we can get off of this train. I've been hearing from people who are scared tonight. They're scared that this is the beginning of some new tit for tat violence that we're spiraling away from each other. That we're spiraling away from each other.
And I think it's time for us to listen. You know, Gabby Giffords was shot in 2011. A Democratic Congresswoman. Steve Scalise got shot in 2017. We kept rushing it up. Gretchen Whitmer was almost kidnapped in 2020. Kept rushing it up. She's a Democrat. Paul Pelosi attacked with a hammer in 2022. More violence, more violence. And we keep rushing it up. And now Donald Trump almost assassinated. It comes within a quarter of an inch of being assassinated in 2024.
This is not the way. This is not the way. If you have somebody in your life who you've been mad at, who votes different from you, or prays different, or loves different, or -- or -- or looks different, text them tonight. Text them tonight. Call them. This is -- this should be a wakeup call for everybody. We got to put our arms around each other. We can vote against each other. We don't have to hate each other.
And if you -- if you don't understand tonight that we could have lost a leader who's important to half the country, who's beloved by half this country and you would have had half this country maybe feeling the need to shoot back. And where would we be? Where would we be?
[23:25:11]
So, this is the moment for everybody. Look in the mirror. I am so glad that Donald Trump is alive tonight.
COOPER: Scott Jennings?
SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, I just want to echo much of what Van just said. Because, you know, I was very angry when I saw this news earlier. I wasn't really angry as a Republican, though. I was angry as an American. Because I view this as a direct attack on our democracy. And regardless of who you support or who you don't like, or who you like, we're all in the democracy together.
And whether you like it or not, Donald Trump is the most likely next president of the United States according to the polls right now, he is an important person in our civic life and in our political affairs. So, I view this as a direct attack on our democracy. It makes me angry for him, for his family, for everyone that was at that rally. It makes me angry for everyone who is an active participant in our politics.
And I think, to echo what Van said, the way you overcome extremism and the way you overcome people who would commit violent acts is by participating more in our democracy. By using speech appropriately. By voting. By doing the things that make our democracy healthy and vibrant and stop doing the things that make it the opposite, because that's where we are right now. We're in the opposite place
But we are at a moment where we can get off the train, as Van said, and get on a path that would make this democracy far healthier than it is right now. Whoever wins this election, Donald Trump or Joe Biden, our country is not going to come to an end. Our constitution is not going to be destroyed. We are not going to see things dissolve in this country. We have elections every two and four years. The country will not end.
Get out and participate, do what you do, support your candidate. But ballots and speech are the way forward, not violence, not bullets, and not telling your friends and neighbors that our is going to come to an end. That has to stop.
COOPER: Tim Naftali.
NAFTALI: Only cowards use bullets to settle political disputes. Cowards, however, can undermine a country. And tonight, as both Van and Scott have mentioned, we came very close to something that would have set us on a very dangerous path. We're still on a dangerous path. We're in a very fragile moment in our history, and this is a time for real -- really deep thinking on the part of influencers and opinion maker -- opinion makers.
I've already seen on social media lurid conspiracy theories about what happened and what might have happened today. We do need to learn more about what went wrong. But we should remember that the former president himself thanked the Secret Service for doing what it could to save his life, to protect him.
This is a time to be very careful about what we say about our institutions. This is a time to stop hating each other. This is a time to stop allowing poison to explain things that are difficult to understand. I'm not sure how you do that as a country. But I do know that there are a lot of folks out there that have a lot of people who listen to them.
And if this -- if there were ever a time in our modern history for those who shape opinion, to dial it down, to take a deep breath and understand that we, our union, our community is more important than anything. And that poison and hatred at this moment is not a sign of patriotism. However, devoted you are to one side or another.
COOPER: That's President Biden boarding Air Force One at Dover Air Force Base. He was in Delaware when this occurred. He's heading back to Washington, D.C.
Wolf, let's go back to you.
BLITZER: Yes, he'll be flying to Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington, then taking his motorcade to the White House. This is a major decision on his part. He wants to be at the White House for full briefings right now on what happened.
Jamie, is there any indication, and you've been getting a lot of re- monitoring a lot of reaction from partisans on both sides, that the angry rhetoric that we've been hearing from both sides is going to calm down?
[23:30:06] JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, if you look at social media, it's not down at all. But I think that tonight as we've heard from certainly people on our air from both sides of the political spectrum, that's what everybody wants.
Well, if you look at social media, it's not down at all. But I think that tonight as we've heard from certainly people on our air from both sides of the political spectrum, that's what everybody wants.
And certainly, you know, we heard from former presidents, Democrats, Republicans asking for that. I was just reading former Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, as one whose family has been the victim of political violence, I know firsthand that political violence of any kind has no place in our society. I thank God the former President Trump is safe.
So hopefully expressions like that will win the day, but we are in very polarized times.
BLITZER: Yes, I thank God that President -- former president Trump is safe as well. Do you want to make a quick point?
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I was just going to go back to what Kaitlan and Jeff Zeleny are reporting about Trump's fear of something happening to him at an event like this, which, you know, is understandable for anybody who is in, in that level of -- of -- of scrutiny and anybody running for president, no matter who you are.
One of the things that is really striking, I'm looking at Chris Lacivita, who's one of the people running Donald Trump's campaign. And he has a photo up one of the remarkable photos taken of this moment where Donald Trump has his hand -- his fist up and there's an American flag behind him. And Lacivita says, now this is some real Iwo Jima shit right here.
And it was really striking to me because it made me think about that moment when the Secret Service had him on the ground and because the microphone was still on, we heard him saying when they were getting him up, first of all, he was looking for his shoe.
And then we heard him say, wait, wait. He is -- he is such a -- he's been in television and in the public eye for so long that his instinct was not to have the imagery of him on the ground and then being whisked off. I know that Jamie, there are a lot of --
GANGEL: Right.
BASH: -- there's some questions about whether just from a security standpoint, that was protocol. But just from the political imagery of it all, the fact that he had the presence of mind to want to, say fight, to put up his fist. And to have those images be the ones that are there, not just for today, not just for the rest of this campaign, but for history, is really striking.
BLITZER: Striking indeed. We're getting word, by the way, from authorities in Butler, Pennsylvania, where this rally was taking place about a press briefing to occur in about 15 minutes or so from now, maybe even sooner with the FBI and Secret Service taking part in this upcoming press briefing -- briefing. We will, of course, bring it to you live once it happens.
And Pamela Brown, I know you're working your sources. You're getting a lot of reaction. What else are you hearing?
PAMELA BROWN, CNN CHIEF INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're also just hearing from the governor of Pennsylvania, Governor Shapiro, who says that former President Trump has now left the Butler area, so he tweeted that out.
You know, Wolf, I was just going back and looking at what officials have said. The FBI director, for example Christopher Wray, and the warnings from them. And just in December, 23rd, it was December of 2023. He said, you know, domestic terrorism probes have more than doubled since the spring of 2020. You have a law enforcement officials have been raising the alarm about this concern. Of course, we're still learning more about this gunman and his motives. You know, of course you one might assume it was political. There's still more to learn.
But I can tell you, Wolf and talking to my sources, this is what happened today is exactly what they have been fearful of, what they have been so concerned of why you had the FBI director, Christopher Wray sounding the alarm about how much domestic terrorism has increased and the concern about lone actors that are hard to -- to identify, their -- it's hard to intervene and to stop them before something like what happened today, happened, right?
And in this case, as we heard from John Miller from what authorities think is the government, from what they know now, you know, we're -- we're keeping it vague, but someone who's 20 years old, he grew up around the area, right? Young person goes there today and you know, almost changed the course of history, almost killed the former president.
I mean, let's just take a step back and think about that. Right? It's remarkable.
BLITZER: Another inch in one direction, that bullet could have gone through his skull.
BROWN: I'm sorry, I shouldn't say remarkable, I mean it's horrific. It's a -- it's a tragedy, what happened today. You had a spectator who, you know, probably woke up today excited to go to this Trump rally. Participate in the democratic process, who lost his or her life. You have two other -- two others critically wounded.
[23:35:11]
This is a really sad day for this country. And I think we are all still processing what this means and the change that this means for the future as well as Abby eloquently talked about earlier.
BLITZER: And as I'm sure you and I remember during testimony before Congress, the FBI, the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies have all said their greatest fear right now seems to be this lone actor. There's a lone individual who for whatever crazy reason decides to do something like this.
BROWN: That's right. And I remember I did a sit-down interview with the sergeant-at-arms for the Senate and she told me this was -- this was just a couple of years ago, but I've heard this consistently since the political rhetoric was in her view, causing an uptick and threats to members of Congress. And she was very concerned about that, and she was sounding the alarm about this, this was after January 6th.
And sources I talked to in the law enforcement community say, they -- that concern has just increased. You know, it is -- and look, we still have a few months until November, and it's not like November. That concern is just going to go away either, right? We are in a pivotal moment in this country. And I think right now what happened today is a reminder of -- of that and the need to tone it down.
BLITZER: And we'll be learning a lot more in the next few minutes when this briefing takes place with the FBI and Secret Service and others. They'll be briefing on what they know right now and what they know right now may be different. And what they know 24 hours from now, but we'll of course have live coverage of that. That's coming up.
As we await for this press briefing, it will be very important. We'll have live coverage right here on CNN.
Kaitlan Collins has some new reporting and she's joining us right now with Abby Phillip.
Kaitlan?
COLLINS: Yes, Wolf, obviously the moment that you see there, the people who surrounded Donald Trump immediately as these shots were going off were his Secret Service agents. They accompany him everywhere he goes, whether it is a political event or to his private clubs, they are always there. They have been since November of 2015 when he was a candidate and he first got Secret Service protection. Obviously, as Abby referenced earlier, not all protectee (ph) -- not all candidates get Secret Service protection, but the ones who warrant it certainly do. And there's a threshold for that. I am --
PHILLIP: And former presidents do as well.
COLLINS: And former presidents do as well, and of course he is a candidate now, so he enjoys it. And there's been this thing kind of populating online tonight as we are watching this, where there's a rumor of people claiming that Trump has been denied request to amplify his Secret Service. I am actually told that is not true. I am told by a source familiar that Donald Trump's Secret Service protection was recently strengthened, actually, which speaks to one. It's not clear if that was because of any threats or anything like that, or simply because of the nature that he is set to formally this week become the presumptive Republican nominee.
And then, of course, as we head into the next four months until November, what that looks like. But it does speak to what we are seeing tonight and the big questions that are going to come out of this, which is the Secret Service and the protection here and the fact that this person was able to scale a roof within the vicinity of the former president of the United States and fire these shots.
And you know, luckily, he is OK and safe. But obviously that is something not to be taken for granted.
COOPER: Well, already, I mean, you know, for there are those who believe the federal government has been weaponized against him, that the FBI, you know, was going to try to kill him at the -- the, you know, at the search at Mar-a-Lago, there's certainly, this certainly feeds into those who believe that sort of thing.
COLLINS: Well, and we're seeing rhetoric like that tonight from people like Senator J.D. Vance who is talking about the efforts to go after Donald Trump pretty quickly after all of this happened. I expect we'll see that to continue in the coming days.
But for Trump and his -- his Secret Service I do want to be clear, he loves his Secret Service agents. Every president, I think, obviously has concerns for their safety, rightfully so, as we are watching play out tonight. But -- but Donald Trump has always had a good relationship with his Secret Service (INAUDIBLE) --
COOPER: The man in the glasses there is the one who was sitting right behind him during the trial in New York, I recall.
COLLINS: Yes, and they're always with him. I mean, and he, and often, and this was the same case when President Biden returned to the White House, they have similar agents. Obviously, there's a big coterie of agents that are, that travel with him anywhere. If you're a reporter and you're out on the South Lawn with the President when he's exiting the Oval Office, there's two standing right in front of you, there's two behind you, there's two over there, and that's when you're on the White House premise. There's also snipers, the counter snipers on the roof to look out as well.
I mean, obviously, any reporter or photographer, anyone who's ever been around a pre -- a President sees the Secret Service immediately. But it is notable tonight, this new reporting, that Donald Trump's Secret Service protection was recently strengthened because it speaks to, one, conspiracies that are already circulating online which should be ignored and obviously corrected. But two, just in the nature of the gravity of this campaign And how it's been playing out and the fact that he does have more agents actually around him right now.
[23:40:05]
PHILLIP: And he -- Trump it's -- it's based on the threat level. So, in large part, and Trump is always someone who's had a high level of threats around him. So, it should not be surprising to people that the -- the -- the protection of Secret Service, especially as he's about to be officially the nominee. It is going to increase and this idea that suddenly it would be peeled back arbitrarily is just not how any of this works. The Secret Service, they take their job seriously. Trump is both a candidate and a former president, which affords him Secret Service protection in both cases. And as Kaitlan was saying, I mean, these are people that he knows. A lot of times they are people who have been with him for a long time, who are around him, who he trusts. The people who are the closest physically to the president are people that he needs to trust. And that he needs to know on a very deeply personal level because they are so close to him at all moments of his life.
And so, you know, watching this play out is what you're seeing on the screen. They are people who know to listen to him. They paused at that moment. When he went to address the crowd, it's really an extraordinary moment.
I also think, Anderson, about listening to that crowd roar back at Trump at such a dangerous time. I mean, all of these people. are at risk in that moment, and they responded to him in at that time. And I think that that's going to go down as one of those iconic moments in American history when we look back on this. I don't think we've really seen anything quite like that.
COOPER: I mean, it -- the -- it shows you his skill at and his knowledge of, and his almost instinct. I mean it is --
PHILLIP: Yes.
COOPER: -- instinctive understanding of the importance of images and moments and he did not want that image of him being hustled out to be the image he wanted it to be, you know, taking a moment to, you know, have a fist in the air, say, fight, fight, fight.
COLLINS: I mean, Donald Trump is a politician, obviously, regardless if you like him or do not like him, that understands his supporters and his base better than anyone. And to take that moment, I mean, Trump is probably his truest self when he's on stage at these crowds and he's interacting with his supporters and, and feeding off of them and -- and he will test lines out on them and see what, what's popular, what's not. We're in the middle of the vice-presidential pick of heat that he's expected to make it in the next 48 hours or so, and he'll often listen when people come out on stage, did they get a big round of applause? How did they resonate with his supporters?
And so, I mean, to see that moment, that is -- it is very Donald Trump --
COOPER: Yes.
COLLINS: -- in that moment to first before exiting the stage, look around and mouth a word of supporters (INAUDIBLE).
PHILLIP: I have been stunned, though, by watching that crowd, the way that they reacted to those gunshots ringing out to the President being whisked off stage, people had been shot. And someone was shot in, it's based on these eyewitnesses, in the head -- in the middle of that crowd. And people, some of them cowered, but many of them stood there relatively calmly. It's really extraordinary just to watch what played out this afternoon just a few hours ago.
COOPER: Wolf, let's go back to you.
BLITZER: And we're waiting to hear directly from officials in Butler, Pennsylvania, where this rally was taking place. We'll be hearing from Pennsylvania State Police, Butler Township Police Department, the FBI, and the Secret Service, and we're expecting it to begin less than five minutes or so from now.
In the meantime, I want to talk to Jonathan Wackrow and Evan Perez about what to expect next in this investigation.
Jonathan, you're a former Secret Service agent. What do you expect?
WACKROW: Well, Wolf, listen, we, you know, there's a lot of questions that need to be answered specifically around, you know, why was there a line-of-sight vulnerability? How could this individual, the shooter, get up onto an elevated building without being identified by law enforcement on the outer perimeter?
So, the -- the investigation is going to start answering some of those questions, but we really need to, you know, get answers quickly because there may need to be protocols changed at the Secret Service, especially as we're entering in this heightened, you know, campaign season, where there are anticipated outdoor -- multiple outdoor events that will be held after the RNC and then leading up into the -- the DNC and all the way through the -- the election day.
So, right now, it is important to understand how this threat materialized in what type of mitigation needs to be put into place, to ensure that this doesn't happen again. I mean, we came millimeters away from losing former President Trump to an assassination. That cannot happen ever again.
Oftentimes you've heard me say that, you know, protocols in the Secret Service are born out of blood. This could be one of those seminal moments for the Secret Service where they need to look at how do they actually address long -- long distance threats. I mean, once the threat was identified, it was neutralized quickly. However, we don't ever want to get to that point again. We want to ensure that that these sites, you know, maintain that 360 degrees of coverage within the secure perimeter. And now there's a lot of questions exterior to that secure -- secure perimeter, that long distance threat that may need to be addressed, Wolf.
[23:45:31]
BLITZER: We have to learn everything, everything about what happened to make sure it never happens again. Good point. Indeed.
Evan Perez, we're expecting this briefing to begin momentarily. Local law enforcement, Pennsylvania State Police, the FBI, the Secret Service. And, and we presumably will be learning more details about what -- what's going on right now. The American public, indeed the world has a right to know what's going on. PEREZ: That's right, Wolf. One of the things that I think is moving, perhaps, you know, giving law enforcement to move a little bit more cautiously, is that they do have some, just some basic law enforcement work to do to verify the identity of this -- of this suspected shooter.
Now, they have a good idea, as John Miller reported earlier, they have a very good idea of who it is, but the person was not carrying identification at the scene. And so that added, that has added some more additional work.
And so, one of the first things that happens is the the -- the -- the -- the FBI working with the U.S. Attorney's Office there in Pittsburgh, they're working to get search warrants issued to make sure that they can do searches, gather evidence, verify what they have on -- on this person -- on this person, and also just to try to start building a case about the motivation. Where this person was, where they acquired the firearm, how long have they been working on this and whether they've left behind any kind of record, anything that might explain exactly what happened here.
Those are the things that you're going to have hundreds of FBI agents, some of them coming from Quantico here in in Virginia, they're on their way to the Pittsburgh area where this -- where this rally happened north of Pittsburgh, that's where they're going, and so some of the -- the police work is now underway.
I don't know how much they're going to be able to tell us at this press briefing in the next, I believe in the next hour or next few minutes that they are -- that they're setting up for, but we do know that a lot of police work is already underway and some of it is -- is stuff that they just can't tell us about yet because that has to be done through the courts.
And of course, you know, while the -- the -- the -- the -- they have the evidence fresh there at the scene. Of course, some of the witness statements are also going to be very important as part of this, Wolf.
BLITZER: Interesting. Very interesting indeed. And Dana Bash, you're getting new information that former President Trump's Secret Service protection was recently expanded. Is that right?
BASH: Yes. I was told by a source familiar with the Secret Service situation in and around Donald Trump that recently the USS -- the U.S. Secret Service has been adding protection. I was asked if that was because of a specific threat, and the answer I got was not to directly answer that, except to say that it wasn't just typical protocol for a presidential candidate or a former president. And that's the reason.
BLITZER: I want to ask Jonathan Wackrow, the former the Secret Service agent if he's heard the same thing that recently -- in recent times Secret Service protection for Donald Trump was strengthened.
WACKROW: Yes, Wolf, and actually, yes, I actually have heard that it has been bolstered. But that's actually the natural course of expansion of protection for presidential candidates. The closer that they come to you know, becoming the nominee, the more Secret Service assets are put towards that specific detail, really culminating you know, to the highest point around the -- the -- the actual convention and then the addition of their running mate as well. Just also expands the Secret Service detail around the primary candidates.
So, what we're seeing here is we actually saw tactical assets that have been applied. We see you know, more intelligence, more post standards. So, the Secret Service naturally is adding more. It doesn't necessarily mean it's in response to a specific threat. What it is in response to is rising public, you know -- you know, the public persona, the closer that the, you know, political activity or the more the political activity gather steam. The more assets are required to again, build out that comprehensive security program for the, you know, not only the former president, but also the Republican candidate.
[23:50:06]
BLITZER: And Jonathan, can we assume that Secret Service protection has been strengthened at the same time for President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris?
WACKROW: Well, it's a little bit of a different structure Wolf with the, you know, when you have a sitting president and, you know, a sitting vice president. Their structures are -- are slightly different than former presidents and presidential candidates who are not in office. But you're coming very close to you having a majority of those -- those assets still applied to former President Trump as the Republican nominee.
So, it's coming very close, but the -- there is a nuanced difference and I don't want to get too much into the -- the -- the Secret Service structure and how it bifurcates from the presidential and vice presidential -- presidential protection structure compared to nominees. But I will say it -- it -- it mirrors very closely, Wolf.
BLITZER: And can we assume that whoever Donald Trump names as his vice-presidential running mate, we expect him to do that in the next day or two or so, will immediately get Secret Service protection?
WACKROW: I think under the current situation, the answer is yes, and I would not be surprised. If the Secret Service has already reached out to all potential vice presidential, you know -- you know, candidate nominees to -- to let them know in advance what the protocol would be to stand up that -- that -- that protective structure almost immediately upon announcement.
BLITZER: And as we look at the site of the upcoming briefing in Butler, Pennsylvania, there, you can see where the -- the briefers will be speaking to reporters and indeed to the country as a whole. We've just received a statement from the Pennsylvania governor, Governor Josh Shapiro. I want to read a portion of it right now. Under the protection of U. S. Secret Service and with the assistance of the Pennsylvania State Police, former President Trump has now left the Butler area. Lori and I are thankful that his team reports that he is fine and we continue to wish him a full and speedy recovery. I think I speak for all of us when we say we also wish him a full and speedy recovery right now.
And Pamela Brown, I know you're getting more reaction as well. What else are you hearing?
BROWN: Yes. I'm just texting and -- and, you know, trying to call sources as well. I think everyone's anxiously awaiting this press conference Wolf, that's coming up really any now.
You know, there is a lot of shock, frankly, among my sources, law enforcement officials about how this happened. We've been talking a lot about it, but from the information we have, where that government was compared to where Donald Trump was on stage, it's only about 500 feet, you know, and we know the government was on that elevated surface. How that happened is still, you know, people just can't believe it. Right. How did that happen?
BLITZER: All right. Hold on a second.
BROWN: Yes.
BLITZER: The news conference is beginning right now. Let's go to Butler, Pennsylvania.
KEVIN ROJEK, FBI SPECIAL AGENT-IN-CHARGE, PITTSBURGH: Is everyone ready?
(OFF-MIC)
ROJEK: So, my name is Kevin Rojek. That's R-O-J-E-K. I'm the special agent in charge of the FBI Pittsburgh field office. The first thing I want to say And I want to start by saying that the FBI stands with the people of Butler County in Western Pennsylvania, and our hearts go out to the victims of this heinous act which occurred today.
This is our community, and I want to let the public know that the FBI has deployed a number of our resources, including investigative agents, our evidence response team, bomb technicians, and we have additional resources coming from other field offices, as well as from FBI headquarters, including our evidence response from Quantico, Virginia.
We have intelligence analysts as well working from our field office in Pittsburg working feverishly to attempt to identify the individual who did this and any motives behind why this was done.
Right now, we need the public's help. Anyone who was on scene who saw anything, who identified any information, please report that to the FBI using either the phone number 1-800-CALL FBI or online at fbi.gov.butler.
This evening we had what we're calling an assassination attempt against our former president, Donald Trump. It's still an active crime scene. As I mentioned, we have a number of agents on scene. We also are working closely with other federal agencies, our state partners and our local police partners as well.
[23:55:12]
Again, at this time, we are not prepared to identify who the shooter is. We are close to that identification. And as soon as we are 100 percent confident and who that individual is, we will share it with the press.
With that being said, also, we do not currently have an identified motive, although our investigators are working tirelessly to attempt to identify what that motive was.
At this time, I'm going to turn over the podium to Colonel Chris Paris from the Penn -- Pennsylvania State Police.
CHRISTOPHER PARIS, COMMISSIONER, PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE: Thank you very much. My name is Colonel Chris Paris, P-A-R-I-S, commissioner of Pennsylvania State Police.
I would just like to say that the state police have been in regular contact with the governor's office, and the full support and assets of the entire agency are behind the FBI and our other federal and municipal partners to assist with this investigation. The thoughts and prayers of the Pennsylvania State Police are likewise with the victims of this terrible act.
We are prepared to support this investigation in any way, shape, or form. And we stand ready to participate in a full, fair and competent and thorough investigation. To give you an operational rundown, a deputy commissioner of operations, Lieutenant Colonel George Bivens is behind me, and he will discuss the operational portion that's being conducted by the Pennsylvania State Police.
Lieutenant Colonel Bivens.
LT. COL. GEORGE BIVENS, PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE: Good evening. So let me describe for you a little bit about the scene that we have over there. As you know -- you know, there was a grandstand, a very large area, a lot of people there when this all unfolded. The former president had come out and begun to speak shortly after 6 o'clock this evening, excuse me, this evening, and within about 10 to 15 minutes a number of sounds were heard, and it became apparent that shots were being fired in that direction.
It was a chaotic scene. Law enforcement, I believe, acted heroically, quickly identifying and -- and -- and neutralizing the threat as well as responding to assist the various victims. PSP had a significant presence on the scene along with all of our federal partners at the time of the shooting. We have since enhanced that presence significantly, bringing in resources from all over the Commonwealth that we have a speedy, thorough investigation.
We are working very closely with the FBI as we work through this. As you can imagine, you know, because of the variety of crimes that have been committed. Some are under federal jurisdiction, some are under state jurisdiction. And so, you know, we're working through all of that, not an issue at all. We work seamlessly, but the FBI has maintained the lead on the attempted assassination. PSP will take the lead on the homicide and the shootings of the other individuals in the -- in the grandstand area.
And so, there are a lot of witnesses to be interviewed, a lot of things to be processed. There were some complicators that hopefully the next time we speak, we can describe for you, but some complicators that slowed down some of the processing and the positive identification of the shooter.
But know that at this time, we have no reason to believe that there is any other existing threat out there. We are doing everything we can to make sure that this is thoroughly investigated and that if there is any information developed that anyone else was involved, that between PSP and the FBI, that will very quickly be followed up on.
So, I think at this time, we would open it up to questions from all of you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)?
BIVENS: Again, I think it's too early to say that. We have one shooter tentatively identified, but we're -- we're not stopping there. We're following up on a lot of information. It will be some time until we can conclusively say or answer that question, I think.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE).
BIVENS: Again, that will all be part of the investigation, but --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE).
[00:00:00]
BIVENS: That will all be part of the investigation. But I can tell you that preliminarily it appears everything unfolded very quickly.
