Trump was nearly an hour late, and his supporters waited impatiently under the hot sun and blaring music. In the middle of the crowd, opposite the stage, a television camera platform pointed at the podium, reporters huddled beneath it for shade.
Finally, Trump took the stage to the customary chants of “USA” and exclaimed, “This is a big crowd. This is a very big, great crowd.” A bright red MAGA cap covered his eyes, his white shirt collar open in the heat as he leaned his arms on the podium.
He began giving street speeches, but quickly grew tired of his prepared material. He suggested inviting Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick to speak, but McCormick was unprepared.
“You don’t care if I don’t use a teleprompter,” Trump teased, “because this teleprompter is so boring.” Trump demanded to see “that chart that I love” of border crossings during the terms of both him and Joe Biden, and pretended to be surprised when producers complied, projecting it onto giant screens on either side of him. “Wow, you guys are getting better over time.”
Pointing to one of the screens, he spoke about the increase in immigration since he left office in 2021. “Look what’s happened to our country!”
There were five or six pops, two at a time, and Trump clapped his ear as if he had heard a mosquito, then shrugged and leaned forward.
“Down, down, down!” Secret Service agents yelled as they ran onto the stage and surrounded Trump. The crowd screamed. There were more pops. More screams. People in the stands behind Trump stumbled about, not knowing where to go. People sitting in chairs and standing crouched or fell to the ground. Thick smoke drifted to the right of the stage and quickly cleared.
More suited Secret Service agents ran onto the stage, followed by men dressed in black, wearing body armor and helmets and carrying assault rifles. The crowd yelled in confusion.
“Are you OK?” one of the officers was heard asking over the microphone at the podium.
“The shooter is down,” another replied.
“We’re ready to move.”
As officers picked him up, he said, “Let me put my shoes on.”
“Hold on, your head is bleeding.”
“Let me put my shoes on,” he said again as agents surrounded him.
The crowd saw him standing and began cheering.
“Wait,” Trump said, pumping his fist. “Fight!” he said. “Fight!”
And the people cried out And again he shouted “USA!”
“We have to move,” an agent said. Trump begged for help and, with his fists raised, stumbled off the stage, down a flight of stairs and into a black SUV, leaving one black dress shoe on the red carpet.
Officers from the Secret Service, county sheriff’s deputies, state police and Homeland Security began urging the crowd to evacuate, saying the scene had become a crime scene. Protesters left the rally and began calling, texting and recording videos of themselves to family and friends. People were shocked but calm.
As people passed by the press box with cameras raised, some became angry at the media.
“You’re not safe. It’s your fault.”
“You wanted political violence and now it’s here. I hope you’re all really happy.”
“The shot echoed around the world.”
“The liberal media is to blame!”
“All of you!”
Others scrambled for cameras to give witness testimony, but amid the panic, testimony was confusing and sometimes contradictory.
The crowd walked somberly to the parking lot, a few stopping for last-minute hot dogs and snow cones.
A man with a cane was crouched behind the toilet, vomiting.
They walked to their cars, past Trump flags fluttering in the breeze and long lines selling MAGA hats, crime scene photo T-shirts, Trump key chains, raunchy bumper stickers and Trump visors topped with bright orange false hair.
A man with a bullhorn, wearing a homemade “JAN 6 SURVIVOR” shirt, urged people to march “peacefully and patriotically” down Main Street, evoking President Trump’s speech at the Ellipse on January 6, 2021. Most people ignored him. One young man accused him of being a federal agent and told him to shut up.
In their wake, the field was littered with empty plastic bottles, and a giant American flag, hoisted from two cranes, fluttered high above the empty white bleachers bordered with red, white and blue flags.
