The gunshots heard around the nation at Donald Trump‘s Butler, Pennsylvania rally will be etched in history forever.
And now, RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal inside details of the chaos before, during, and after the scene that may have propelled the president to his landslide victory just four months later.
In Alex Isenstadt’s new book, Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power, Isenstadt provides a backstage look into how Trump, 78, and the team around him rallied during the shocking campaign moment last year.
On July 13, 2024, the MAGA leader narrowly escaped an assassination attempt as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle – hitting Trump in the upper right ear.
The Secret Service quickly neutralized Crooks, but not before the gunfire claimed the life of attendee Corey Comperatore and injured two others.
As panic erupted, Trump ducked behind the podium while Secret Service agents shielded him, and one agent, Sean Curran, threw himself onto Trump to protect him.
Isenstadt explained: “It was chaos. Rally-goers behind Trump – some of whom just moments before were holding placards reading ‘Joe Biden: You’re Fired!’ – cowered. The agents were talking to one another, trying to figure out what was next.”
The journalist went on to describe the following moments, including how the agents lifted Trump up and formed a circle around him.
But despite having just been shot, Trump’s priority was his footwear. He told them: “Let me get my shoes.”
The author explained: “Trump’s shoes had slipped off during the maelstrom. The former president had as of late been wearing shoes made by the Swiss manufacturer Bally.
“While the shoes were designed to be tied on, Trump had turned them into slip-ons. Trump appeared to search for them, and then stood up, looking as if he were in shock.”
Moments later, Trump notoriously pumped his fist three times and exclaimed: “Fight, fight, fight!”
But it was in the moments when the 47th president was escorted away – after the cameras stopped rolling – that Isenstadt provided a shocking glimpse into the historic scene.
He explained: “The detail guided Trump offstage, his typically immaculately sprayed gold hair out of place and his bloodied MAGA hat in hand.
“Descending the stairs, he wrapped his arms around an agent to his right. The loyal Curran was on his left.
“Once they got to the bottom, it took the agents another twenty seconds to get Trump into his SUV. Before getting in, he raised his arm once more.”