With Agency Reports
Secret Service agents rushed former President Donald Trump off the stage after he fell to the ground amid loud bangs at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
After the bangs, Trump fell to the ground and was covered by Secret Service agents. He was stood back up by security personnel and had blood on his face. He was yelling back to the crowd and raising his fist before being whisked away by security personnel.
Trump was then taken to a vehicle and evacuated from the scene. The incident took place moments after he took the stage at the rally.
“We heard a bunch of … loud cracking noises. At first, I thought: Is that fireworks? All of a sudden everyone started screaming,” said CNN’s Alayna Treene, who was reporting from the rally.
Speaker Johnson says he is “praying for President Trump”
Speaker Mike Johnson posted on X that he is “praying for President Trump,” moments after the former president was taken offstage after he was injured in an incident at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik also posted on the platform, saying, “Please pray for President Trump, his family, and all of the patriots at today’s rally in Pennsylvania.”
The news comes after it was announced earlier this week that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a fellow former GOP presidential nominee, is expected to speak at the RNC.
CNN reported Tuesday that Haley and DeSantis had been left out of the program, sparking backlash from their supporters.
Trump’s team had been discussing whether to invite Haley to the convention next week.
What pool reporters saw and heard at the rally where Trump was rushed off stage
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is helped off the stage at a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, July 13.
Pool reporters at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where former President Donald Trump was rushed offstage reported that they heard ‘“a series of loud explosions or loud bangs” before Secret Service agents rushed toward Trump
“The Secret Service went and immediately covered President Trump,” according to the pool report. “Pool heard residual bangs afterward.”
“Agents grabbed Trump, who was seen waving his fists in the air,” the pool report added.