Trump ignored warnings before Butler's assassination attempt

Trump and his campaign were warned a week ago that Butler's rally site was dangerous and would be a “disaster,” but the warnings were ignored.

Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), a Trump ally who heads the congressional task force investigating the assassination attempt, said he warned the campaign about the dangers of Butler's site.

NOTUS reports.
“I made a statement (on the campaign trail) when they first told me that I said, “You can't do that there.” It's too small. The idea was that they already made a decision, but it's not the right place. The answer came back. “Well, we've already made a decision.” I said: “So, who visited the site?” And the answer was: Congressman, we told you we've already made a decision,” Kelly said. “That answer told me no one had been here.”

“I told them. “You made the wrong decision. This is going to be very dangerous. And they said: “Well, we've already made a decision.” So from that point on, I was concerned,” Kelly said.

As someone who grew up down the road from Butler's site, I can tell you it was a terrible place to campaign. It's rural and virtually impossible to secure effectively, as Rep. Kelly noted that rampant road construction in Western Pennsylvania this summer has made the place even less safe.

None of this excuses the Secret Service, but as Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), who also serves on the task force investigating the assassination attempt, told CNN's Jim Acosta, the Secret Service doesn't have the power to veto the campaign's location.

Video of Moskovitz.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) reports. @Acosta: that Congress is considering whether the site of Trump's assassination attempt was too dangerous and should not have been chosen. “We are investigating whether or not this site should have been selected at all.” pic.twitter.com/CCGWJWDDck

— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) August 27, 2024

There were clear security failures, but Trump campaign was in a place they shouldn't have been because they had to book a smaller venue because Trump has trouble drawing big crowds and he doesn't have the money to book bigger sites, the big Butler County venue. that he used in 2020

There were a number of failures that led to the assassination attempt, but the situation could have been avoided if Trump and his campaign had heeded warnings about their choice of venue.

Jason is the editor-in-chief. She is also the White House Press Center and Congressional Correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a BA in Political Science. Her graduate work focused on public policy, specializing in social reform movements.

Awards and professional memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association