Analysis of conspiracy theories, allegations of attack on Donald Trump

MILWAUKEE – The 2024 Republican National Convention begins Monday against the unprecedented and gruesome backdrop of its presumptive nominee surviving an assassination attempt.

Former President Donald Trump arrived in Wisconsin for the convention on Sunday, a day after a gunman fired a bullet that Trump said struck him in the upper ear just minutes into a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Authorities say the suspect, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, shot and killed Corey Comperatore, a former volunteer fire chief, and seriously wounded two other attendees before the Secret Service returned fire, killing him.

Twenty-four hours later, Crooks’ motive was still unknown. Members of Congress and prominent social media accounts filled the void with unsubstantiated claims about the suspect’s motives and political beliefs.

In an Oval Office speech Sunday evening, President Joe Biden urged Americans to lower the temperature in their politics, saying political differences should be resolved at the ballot box.

Trump decided to stick to his plans and fly here on Sunday. He did not want his arrival to be delayed by a “potential assassin,” he said.

There are many unanswered questions.

On Trump’s to-do list before the RNC was to announce his vice presidential nominee. With the assassination dominating the news and sentiment, will Trump reveal a name? Will Trump speak? We wait to see how the assassination will affect the lineup and the issues.

Social media platforms are flooded with “staged” claims

Almost immediately after the suspect opened fire, conspiracy theories flooded the Internet claiming that the assassination attempt on Trump was staged.

“Donald Trump continues to screw us over!! This was SO staged!!! If someone REALLY wanted to take him out they wouldn’t use a pellet gun!!,” one person posted a little over an hour after the shooting on X.

Some social media users even falsely claimed that Trump faked the bleeding from his ear by using a “blood pill.”

The “staged” claims are a fallacy. The FBI is investigating the shooting as an attempted murder. Thousands of rally attendees witnessed the incident, including dozens of news photographers and reporters.

Secret Service agents shot and killed suspected gunman Crooks shortly after he opened fire, the agency said. According to the New York Times, police officers found an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle on the roof of a nearby building.

The day after the shooting, law enforcement authorities continued to investigate a possible motive.

The shooter, according to US intelligence, fired several shots from an “elevated position outside the venue”; photos on social media showed a body on a roof. Trump’s face was covered in blood as agents pushed him off the stage, the intelligence agency said. Trump later said on Truth Social that the bullet struck the top of his right ear.

Innocent people wrongly identified as perpetrators on the Internet

It was not until the early hours of July 14 that officials were able to reveal the identity of the suspected shooter. Dubious information quickly began to accumulate on the Internet.

As people from all over the world turned to platforms like X and TikTok to get the latest information on the attack, they found a flood of supposedly confirmed names of suspects as well as photos that were anything but authentic.

An Italian sports blogger found his words and image transformed into something false and malicious.

“#Trump shooter Mark Violets was killed. Before the attack, he uploaded a video to YouTube claiming ‘justice would come.’ Well, justice came for no one but himself,” said a Facebook post.

That was Pants on Fire. The man in the video had nothing to do with the shooting. Marco Violi posted a statement in Italian on Instagram denying any involvement in the shooting.

“I’m in Italy, I’m in Rome and I had no idea what was happening,” Violi said, according to the translation of the post on Instagram.

None of Violi’s Instagram posts in recent months have mentioned Trump or US politics.

On Meta’s Threads platform, a user claimed to have information about the shooter. “The Trump Rally shooter has been identified as 32-year-old Hank Pecker, who lives in California,” the text beneath the photo said.

That was Pants on Fire, too. This time, a reverse image search showed that the photo of the thread’s post was uploaded in February 2022 by Twitch streamer Hasan Piker. According to Dot Esports, an esports and gaming news site, Piker has played a “gun-loving, self-proclaimed libertarian” named Hank Pecker in his videos.

And one more thing: Social media posts quickly claimed to show the suspect’s portrait, which shows the side profile of a long-haired blond man wearing a blue shirt and glasses.

In a video, the man can be seen claiming responsibility for the attack. “My name is Thomas Matthew Crooks,” he said. “I hate Republicans, I hate Trump, and guess what, you got the wrong guy.”

Pants are burning. The man in the video is not Crooks. The photos and video appeared online several hours after authorities confirmed that the real suspect was dead.

Yes, some Democrats wanted to withdraw Trump’s Secret Service protection

Country musician Travis Tritt, Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake and Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia accused Democrats of weakening Trump’s protections and endangering his security.

“Only this Congress,” eight Democratic members of the House of Representatives, “have all co-sponsored a bill to END Trump’s Secret Service protection,” Greene posted on social media on July 13.

This is correct and refers to Trump’s criminal proceedings.

In April, Democratic Representatives Troy A. Carter Sr. of Louisiana, Barbara Lee of California, Frederica Wilson of Florida, Yvette D. Clarke of New York, Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey, Jasmine Crockett of Texas, Joyce Beatty of Ohio and Steve Cohen of Tennessee co-sponsored HR 8081, which would have redefined who is eligible for Secret Service protection. The bill said it would “end with any person convicted of a federal or state offense punishable by one year or more in prison.”

That would have covered Trump, too, and the title of the law – “Denying Infinite Security and Government Resources Allocated toward Convicted and Extremely Dishonorable Former Protectees Act” or “DISGRACED Former Protectees Act” – was clearly aimed at Trump, who had been convicted in New York City at the time of falsifying business records. The jury found Trump guilty on all 34 counts.

As worded, the bill would have lumped together all types of recipients of Secret Service protection, without distinguishing between former presidents and current presidential candidates—both of which include Trump.

The bill stalled after its introduction, and the vast majority of Democratic lawmakers did not support it.

Unfounded claims that “Biden gave the orders”

Before many facts about the shooter were known, Republican U.S. Representative Mike Collins of Georgia said that “Joe Biden gave the order” to assassinate Trump.

There is no evidence that Biden ordered Trump’s assassination.

In his article, Collins wrote quoted a post by Steve Guestwho describes himself in his account as a “conservative communicator.” Guest’s post reads: “Joe Biden on 8/7/2024: “We’re done talking about the debate, it’s time to target Trump.”

This refers to statements that CNN reported in a phone call with donors on July 8. CNN cited as its source “a recording of the conversation that CNN received from a participant who is not authorized to release it.”

According to CNN, Biden said it was time to turn his and the nation’s focus away from his performance at the June 27 debate, which was panned by many pundits and politicians.

“We are tired of talking about the debate,” Biden said, according to CNN. “It’s time to take aim at Trump. We can’t go another day without explaining what he’s doing, and we have to hold him accountable.”

This quote does not prove that Biden “gave the order” to assassinate Trump.

The X-Report of the Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee amplified the same Biden quote but did not go as far as Collins in saying Biden ordered the assassination. The committee’s post said, “Joe Biden: ‘It’s time to target Trump.’ That just happened.”

On July 14, the day after the assassination, Biden stated in a brief speech: “I have consistently directed the Secret Service to provide (Trump) with all necessary resources and protections to ensure his continued safety.”

Where was Biden when the shooting happened? When did he respond?

Immediately after the attack, some social media users asked where Biden was and if he would speak.

“Where is Biden? Where is the White House? Why haven’t the American people heard from the president?” asked Michael Markey Jr., the Republican candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan, at 7:22 p.m. ET on X.

“What is Joe Biden doing?” asked Dave Portnoy, founder of Barstool Sports, in an X-Video at 7:47 p.m. ET.

According to reports from journalists accompanying the president, Biden arrived at St. Edmond Catholic Church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, at 5:43 p.m. ET.

The President spent the weekend at his second home and, according to journalists’ reports, celebrated Saturday evening mass.

US intelligence said the shooting occurred at about 6:15 p.m. Eastern Time.

According to a pool report filed by a traveling journalist at 6:23 p.m., the president left the church at 6:19 p.m. It said reporters asked Biden if he had been briefed on the shooting; he responded “no,” the report said.

Biden headed from the church to his home in Delaware. At 6:45 p.m., according to the journalist’s report, the president received an initial briefing on the shooting. At 7:58 p.m., he released a statement on X saying he had been informed of the shooting at Trump’s rally and was “grateful to hear he is OK and safe.” At 8:13 p.m., Biden spoke from the Rehoboth Beach Police Department.

After the conversation with Trump, Biden returned to the White House at 12:37 a.m. on July 14, according to the journalist’s report.

Chief correspondent Louis Jacobson and editors Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu, Samantha Putterman, Maria Ramirez Uribe and Loreben Tuquero contributed reporting.