In a prime-time speech Sunday from the Oval Office, a day after what the FBI described as an assassination attempt on the former president donald trumpPresident Biden delivered a message that sought to cool the heated political rhetoric of the 2024 campaign.
“My fellow Americans,” Biden began his speech, “I want to speak to you tonight about the need to lower the temperature in our politics and remember that while we may disagree, we are not enemies. We are neighbors, we are friends, we are coworkers, we are citizens, and most importantly, we are fellow Americans.”
The prime-time speech, Biden’s second White House address in a single day, came as the country struggled to come to terms with the shooting that left two people dead, including the shooter, and injured Trump and two others.
Here are Sunday’s key takeaways:
Taking stock of ‘where we are’
A theme of Biden’s prime-time speech was the need to move away from the fiery rhetoric that has become commonplace in American politics.
“Yesterday’s shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania asks all of us to take a step back, assess where we are, how we move forward from here,” Biden said, adding that he spoke by phone with Trump, who was released shortly after being evaluated at a local hospital.
And while the president urged Americans on both sides of the political aisle to refrain from over-the-top attacks, he also made clear that any acts of violence inspired by such words were unacceptable.
“There is no place in America for this kind of violence,” Biden said.
But the campaign, Biden added, would continue.
“The Republican convention will begin tomorrow. I have no doubt they will criticize my record and offer their own vision for this country. I will be traveling this week defending our record and my – our – vision. I will continue to speak out strongly for our democracy, defend our Constitution and the rule of law,” Biden said, adding that “there should be no violence on our streets. This is how democracy should work.”
What We Learned About the Shooter
On Sunday, authorities identified the shooter at the Trump rally near Butler, Pennsylvania, as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
The criminals climbed to the roof of a building outside the Secret Service perimeter, approximately 160 meters from the stage where Trump spoke, the Associated Press reported. He was armed with an AR-style rifle that his father allegedly bought for him at least six months ago.
Some bystanders alerted police to a man climbing onto the roof, the Associated Press reported, and an officer attempted to confront Crooks, who pointed his rifle at the officer, forcing him down a staircase. Crooks then turned and began shooting toward the stage.
A graduate of Bethel Park High School, Crooks was listed as a Republican on the voter rolls and worked in the kitchen of a nursing home near his home, the BBC reported. As Biden noted in his remarks, law enforcement authorities are still trying to determine a motive for Saturday’s shooting.
What we learned about the victims
Corey Compatore, 50, a former fire chief, was identified as an audience member killed during Saturday’s shooting.
Comperatore’s sister, Dawn Comperatore Schafer, first revealed her identity through a post on Facebook.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro described Comperatore as a “hero” during a press conference on Sunday. Comperatore attended the rally with his wife and two daughters, and when the shooting began, he dove to protect his family.
“We lost a fellow Pennsylvanian last night: Corey Comperatore,” Shapiro said. “Corey was a girl, Dad. Corey was a firefighter. Corey went to church every Sunday. Corey loved his community. And most especially, Corey loved his family.”
The identities of two other shooting victims were also released Sunday by the Pennsylvania State Police. David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74, survived the shooting and are now in stable condition at a nearby hospital.
Secret Service under scrutiny after shooting
Earlier in the day, Biden announced that an investigation has been ordered into the security breach that led to the shooting.
“I ordered an independent national security review at yesterday’s rally to assess exactly what happened, and I will share the results of that independent review with the American people,” Biden said.
Biden also directed the Secret Service to review all security measures planned for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday in Milwaukee.
Numerous lawmakers were much less charitable toward the Secret Service on Sunday, demanding to know details about the apparent security breach.
“We need to know: how could an individual be at that altitude, which was apparently seen by passers-by on the ground; How could this not be noticed by the Secret Service?” House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana said Sunday morning on NBC. “A lot more questions than answers this morning.”
“Why wasn’t the roof secured beforehand by the Secret Service? How could a sniper so easily get within range of a presidential candidate?” Rep. Ritchie Torres, a Democrat from New York, wrote on X.
Trump arrives in Milwaukee for Republican National Convention
Trump landed Sunday night in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention, which begins tomorrow.
“Based on the terrible events of yesterday, I was going to postpone my trip to Wisconsin and the Republican National Convention by two days, but I have just decided that I cannot allow a potential ‘shooter’ or assassin to force a change in the schedule, or any something else,” Trump wrote in a message posted to Truth Social earlier in the day.
