In a new excerpt from 2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America, now published in The Washington Post, President Donald Trump revealed he was bleeding heavily after the assassination attempt during a July 13, 2024 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania—a situation so dire that aides believed he’d been shot “four or five” times.
Trump, speaking from his hospital bed, described the aftermath: “It was bleeding like a b****,” he told the book’s authors, recounting how “there was blood everywhere.” According to the reported scene, he was still wearing his suit and had a bandage covering his injured ear.
The shooting, carried out by 20‑year‑old Thomas Matthew Crooks from a rooftop roughly 100 yards away, grazed Trump’s right ear and resulted in casualties among rallygoers. Agents rushed him to Butler Memorial Hospital, where, as The Post authors describe, “Trump was sitting up in bed, still wearing his suit. A bandage covered his ear. ”
One key moment came when aides feared the worst. Trump said they thought he’d been shot multiple times. “They thought I had four or five bullets in me because there was so much blood,” he recalled. But the panic eased when his aides heard him joking, a clear sign he was stable.
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Before the attack, Trump was mid‑speech when he suddenly fell as agents tackled him. He later raised his fist defiantly—a moment witnessed by many and frequently replayed in campaign ads. Secret Service snipers neutralized the shooter, while Trump was rushed to safety amid a chaotic evacuation.
Medical records show the bullet grazed his ear lobe—an injury that typically bleeds heavily, which may have exaggerated the perceived severity.
In the hours after the shooting, support came pouring in from some very unexpected names. Tech billionaires Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Elon Musk all sent public messages wishing Trump well.
Zuckerberg, who had often clashed with Trump in the past, reportedly called the moment “one of the most badass things” he had ever seen. He was talking about the image of Trump, bleeding from the ear, yet still standing and raising his fist in front of the crowd right after the attack.
Later that same day, Trump was discharged from the hospital. He boarded a plane and flew to his home in Bedminster, New Jersey, where his wife, Melania, was waiting for him. During that time, Trump also received a phone call from President Joe Biden. The two had just faced off in a very tense debate, but Trump described the call as “very nice, actually.”
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
