Trump slammed as he pretends to get shot in ear at memecoin investors dinner: ‘Most disgusting display'

LOWES ISLAND, VIRGINIA: Donald Trump found himself in hot water after he joked about his Butler, Pennsylvania, assassination attempt by pretending to get shot in the ear during a private dinner for $TRUMP memecoin investors on Thursday, May 22.

The 78-year-old president held a private crypto event at his exclusive golf club in Virginia, where invitees obtained entry by participating in an auction to determine who had the most holdings of Trump's meme coin between April 23 and May 12. 

Investors spent an estimated $148 million on the $TRUMP coin to ensure their invitation to the gala, with the top 25 spenders accounting for more than $111 million, according to OK! Magazine.

As the event was closed to the press, a slew of leaked footage became the public’s only look into the event.

Donald Trump jokes about his Butler assassination attempt

In one of the leaked footage, the Commander-in-Chief was seen making light of an assassination attempt on him at a July 2024 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

“Did you know that just before the election, they went all crypto? You know that, right?” Trump asked the audience before a heavy thump was heard in the quiet.

“Whoops… My ear!” the president remarked in reference to the rifle shot that grazed him. “That was amazing, very strange noise. That brings back some not-such-good memories,” he added.

The joke elicited howls of laughter from the audience, who began chanting "fight! fight! fight!" as Trump had done while being hauled offstage following the incident last year.

Trump's ad lib echoed a similar joke made by former president Ronald Reagan in 1987, when the late president said, "Missed me," after a balloon popped halfway through one of his addresses at an event in West Berlin.

Reagan had also faced a life-threatening attempt in 1981 when would-be assassin John Hinckley Jr shot him in the lung outside a Washington, DC, hotel. 

Donald Trump slammed over vile assassination attempt joke

Donald Trump’s crude joke about his assassination attempt was met with a fierce backlash online as social media users slammed the president over his insensitive actions.

“Best comedian out rn,” one user wrote on X.

"This has to be the most disgusting display anyone has done this year. Donald Trump pretending to be hit in the ear. This may be why some people have even suggested that the assassination attempt in Butler was faked too," another user suggested.

"Look at all of these rich freaks laughing AT him. He is just a side show," one person commented, while another wrote, "That was the trailer from his first performance in FL, which got rave reviews from MAGAs."

"Wonder if Comperatore's family laughed when they saw this," one individual remarked, referring to Corey Comperatore, a volunteer who was shot dead after diving on members of his family to protect them as 20-year-old Thomas Crooks opened fire at Trump.

"Because everyone in that room is in on the joke," another added.

"How is it that the richest people in the world are also the dumbest??" one netizen asked.

Outcry over Donald Trump’s crypto memecoin gala

Donald Trump's gala dinner for the crypto memecoin investors was shrouded in secrecy amid widespread outrage over the venture, which critics on both sides of the political aisle have condemned as a blatant criminal enrichment scheme, The Daily Beast reported.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the event, claiming that the president attended the dinner in his "personal time" rather than as head of state.

“The president is attending it in his personal time. It is not a White House dinner, it’s not taking place here at the White House,” she claimed.

However, one leaked video from the event showed Trump speaking next to a lectern with the official presidential seal, while another showed the podium for his main comments bearing the same stamp.

Not only critics but several attendees were also not very happy with the private dinner. A few guests have stated that they were disappointed by both the level of service and the president's apparent refusal to mingle with the bulk of his guests, who are alleged to have paid an average of $1.7 million per seat.

“The food sucked. Wasn’t given any drinks other than water or Trump’s wine,” one person told CNBC, adding “[Trump] didn’t talk to any of the 220 guests—maybe the top 25.”

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