ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT FAILS

Trump survives attack in Pennsylvania, shooter dead

Shooter confirmed dead.

A bloody former President Donald Trump shook his fist into the air to show his supporters he was only wounded in an attempted assassination targeting him at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The shooter was shot and killed by U.S. Secret Service, but authorities would not confirm details late Saturday night.

The presumed Republican candidate for president this November was speaking at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., when video of the event showed multiple loud shots and Trump grabbing at his right ear, followed by obvious blood around the ear. Campaign security quickly surrounded Trump and lowered him to the podium floor.

Law enforcement stormed the stage, while Trump slowly rose to his feet allowing the crowd to see the blood coming from the top of his right ear.

Trump began gesturing to the crowd while being escorted off stage, yelling “fight, fight!.” His supporters cheered back. Trump later said a bullet pierced his upper ear, as video of the event confirmed.

Secret Service members protecting Trump could be seen saying “shooter’s down,” indicating that someone who had fired at Trump was no longer a threat. The shooter was later confirmed dead. U.S. Secret Service Chief of Communications Anthony Guglielmi said a person fired multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position outside of the rally venue. Secret Service agents later confirmed they killed the shooter.

Guglielmi said one spectator was dead and two others in attendance were in critical condition.

The Butler County District Attorney confirmed to media that the shooter was dead.

Trump’s campaign posted a statement from the former president.

“I want to thank the United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania. Most importantly, I want to send my condolences to the family of the person at the Rally who was killed and also to the family of another person that was badly injured. It is incredible that such an act can happen in our Country,” the statement read. “Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my ear. I knew immediately something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”

The Trump campaign said the former president is being treated at a local hospital but is OK. A Washington Post reporter said “Butler county district attorney Richard Goldinger tells me Trump was grazed by gunfire but is safe. An audience member was killed and the shooter is dead. Another person is in serious condition, the prosecutor said.”

Anthony Gugliemi, chief of communications for the Secret Service, released a statement at 8:49 p.m. on Saturday.

“During former President Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on the evening of July 13th at approximately 6:15 p.m., a suspected shooter fired multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position outside of the rally venue. U.S. Secret Service quickly responded with protective measures and the former president is safe and being evaluated. One spectator was killed, two spectators were critically injured. The incident is under investigation and Secret Service has formally notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

The attack occurred just two days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where GOP delegates will formally designate Trump as their presidential candidate to take on President Joe Biden in November. The Trump campaign said Saturday that the former president still plans to attend.

Cole Lauterbach

Managing Editor

Related Topics:#TheCenterSquare AssassinationAttemptFails ColeLauterbach DonaldTrumpShot TrumpShootingPennsylvania

Up Next

FBI identifies Trump shooter as investigation continues

Don't Miss

Trump reacts to assassination attempt: Bullet ‘pierced the upper part of my right ear’

Todayville

Todayville is a digital media and technology company. We profile unique stories and events in our community. Register and promote your community event for free.

Follow Author

Kennedy to cut 10,000 HHS employees to reduce ‘bureaucratic sprawl’

Business / 1 hour ago

Feds Spent Roughly $1 Billion To Conduct Survey That Could’ve Been Done For $10,000, Musk Says

Energy / 6 hours ago

Poll: Majority says energy independence more important than fighting climate change

Business

Kennedy to cut 10,000 HHS employees to reduce ‘bureaucratic sprawl’

Published on March 27, 2025

Todayville

From The Center Square

By Brett Rowland

The changes are expected to reduce the agency’s headcount from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a significant restructuring of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday in a move to streamline the huge federal agency and cut costs.

Kennedy plans to trim about 10,000 employees from the agency’s workforce in addition to employees who left as part of a Deferred Resignation Program, similar to a buy out, earlier this year. The move is expected to save about $1.8 billion.

Kennedy said the restructuring won’t affect the agency’s critical services. When combined with HHS’ other efforts, including early retirement, the changes are expected to reduce the agency’s headcount from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees. The restructuring will also align the department with Kennedy’s goals for a healthier U.S. population.

“We aren’t just reducing bureaucratic sprawl. We are realigning the organization with its core mission and our new priorities in reversing the chronic disease epidemic,” Kennedy said. “This Department will do more – a lot more – at a lower cost to the taxpayer.”

Kennedy also said the restructuring of the department’s 28 divisions will get rid of redundant units, consolidating them into “15 new divisions, including a new Administration for a Healthy America, or AHA, and will centralize core functions such as Human Resources, Information Technology, Procurement, External Affairs, and Policy.” Regional offices will be reduced from 10 to 5.

The overhaul will implement the new “HHS priority of ending America’s epidemic of chronic illness by focusing on safe, wholesome food, clean water, and the elimination of environmental toxins. These priorities will be reflected in the reorganization of HHS.”

Kennedy also said the restructuring would improve taxpayers’ experience with HHS by making the agency more responsive and efficient. He also said the changes would ensure that Medicare, Medicaid, and other essential health services remain intact.

The Administration for a Healthy America will combine multiple agencies – the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Health Resources and Services Administration, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health — into a single, unified entity, Kennedy said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will get the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, which is responsible for national disaster and public health emergency response.

“Over time, bureaucracies like HHS become wasteful and inefficient even when most of their staff are dedicated and competent civil servants,” Kennedy said. “This overhaul will be a win-win for taxpayers and for those that HHS serves.”

Among the cuts: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will shed about 3,500 full-time employees. Officials said the reduction won’t affect drug, medical device, or food reviewers, nor will it impact inspectors. The CDC will drop about 2,400 employees. The National Institutes of Health will cut about 1,200 employees. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will cut about 300 employees. The reorganization won’t affect Medicare and Medicaid services, officials said.

Brett Rowland

Investigative Reporter

Business

Feds Spent Roughly $1 Billion To Conduct Survey That Could’ve Been Done For $10,000, Musk Says

Published on March 27, 2025

Todayville

From the Daily Caller News Foundation

By Hailey Gomez

The Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE’s) Elon Musk said Thursday on Fox News that the group found the federal government spent almost $1 billion on a survey that could’ve only cost thousands.

Following President Donald Trump entering office in January, his administration pushed for Musk and DOGE to comb through the government’s spending and identify potential cuts to save taxpayer dollars. On “Special Report with Bret Baier,” the Fox News host sat with Musk and his DOGE team and asked the billionaire what has been the most “astonishing thing” he’s witnessed so far in this process.

“The sheer amount of waste and fraud in the government,” Musk said. “It is astonishing. It’s mind-blowing. We routinely encounter waste of a billion dollars or more, casually.”

“For example, like the simple survey that was literally [a] 10 questions survey. You could do it with SurveyMonkey, [which] would cost about $10,000. The government was being charged almost a billion dollars for that,” Musk added.

WATCH:

Baier could be seen interrupting Musk as he sounded astonished, later asking, “For just a survey?”

Musk responded and said the survey was essentially pointless as it had no “feedback loop.”

“A billion dollars for a simple online survey — ‘Do you like the National Park?,’ and then there appeared to be no feedback loop for what would be done with that survey,” Musk said. “So the survey would just go into nothing. It was insane.”

In February, Democrats’ opposition to Musk’s and DOGE’s place in the Trump administration began to ramp up after the billionaire announced during an X discussion that he and the president had agreed to upend the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Musk warned the agency was wasting billions of taxpayer dollars.

Some of the programs funded through USAID had not only attempted to advance a radical leftist agenda worldwide, but some had a high risk of landing in the Taliban’s hands and also aiding an organization linked to the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Baier told Musk how he and DOGE technically had 130 days as a “special government employee,” asking if he believes he will be able to complete his task in the time frame allotted.

“I think we will have accomplished most of the work required to reduce the deficit by a trillion dollars within that time frame,” Musk said.

“We are cutting the waste and fraud in real time. So every day like that passes, our goal is to reduce the waste and fraud by $4 billion a day, every day, seven days a week. So far we are succeeding,” Musk added.