WATCH: Trump kisses and thanks woman who operated chart that 'saved his life' during rally shooting
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: Former president Donald Trump thanked the "computer genius" female staffer who put up the chart he was referring to when he was shot in an assassination attempt, adding that it saved his life.
The former POTUS survived an assassination attempt on July 13 during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania when a bullet grazed his right ear. The shooter, Thomas Crooks, was killed by the Secret Service snipers after he injured two spectators and killed one.
Trump publicly thanks the woman who put the chart up on the screen which saved his life on J13 🇺🇸🙏🏼🥹
— TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) July 31, 2024
“She saved my life!” http://pic.twitter.com/bSQB4ZAtZ3
Donald Trump thanks woman for saving his life during assassination attempt
During a rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Trump said while talking about immigration, "You know, this chart saved my life. Where is that chart? I love that chart."
He added, "I’m going to sleep with that chart for the rest of my life. That chart … you know the amazing thing? You know, the people that operate the computers and all the brilliant equipment we have backstage."
God Bless this woman, she is the person that put up the chart that saved Donald Trump’s life
— Marjorie Taylor Greene Press Release (Parody) (@MTGrepp) July 31, 2024
“She saved my life” - Trump pic.twitter.com/7Y7zlrQsmf
Trump then asked the woman who had prepared the chart to come on stage and called her "great."
“She should come out. Just tell her to come out here for a second,” Trump told his team. “Quick, quick, quick, quick, you got to get her," Trump said.
He added, "She’s never done this before. She saved my life in a sense. I said you saved my life. Here she is. Wow." “She’s a computer genius,” Trump asserted. “She saved my life.”
Trump added the bullet would have been a perfect hit if the chart had been put up to his left instead of his right. He further stated that the woman had informed him she was "flabbergasted" that he had requested the chart so early during his July 13 rally, even though he always pulls it up toward the conclusion of his remarks.
Trump assassination attempt exposes faults in Secret Service
A letter circulating within the Secret Service claims that a sniper believes that it is certain that another assassination attempt against a presidential candidate would occur before Election Day since the attack on Trump exposed the agency's security weaknesses.
The letter, which was first published by RealClearPolitics, read, "This agency NEEDS to change, if not now, WHEN? The NEXT assassination attempt in 30 days? We all SHOULD expect another attempt to happen before November. We’ve exposed our inability to protect our leaders due to our leadership."
🚨🚨🚨 EXCLUSIVE: A Secret Service counter sniper sent an email Monday night to the entire Uniformed Division (not agents) saying he will not stop speaking out until "5 high-level supervisors (1 down) are either fired or removed from their current positions." The counter sniper… pic.twitter.com/0dg99EESQk
— Susan Crabtree (@susancrabtree) July 30, 2024
The Secret Service's management of security for former presidents has been under intense criticism ever since the assassination attempt on Trump, according to the New York Post.
Law enforcement officials had earlier informed the New York Post that there was a full 30-second gap between the moment local police confronted the shooter and the initial rounds he fired at Trump. This raised concerns about why Trump was allowed to stay onstage.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned on July 23 after facing criticism related to the assassination attempt.
