Nearly 2 Weeks After Attempted Assassination, FBI Confirms Trump Was Hit by a Bullet

The FBI has confirmed that former President Donald Trump was struck by a bullet or bullet fragment when a gunman opened fire on him earlier this month.

“What struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet, either whole or fragmented into smaller pieces, fired from the deceased’s gun,” the agency said in a statement Friday.

Trump was struck in the ear and wore a bandage during a political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 at the Republican National Convention. A 50-year-old former fire chief was killed and two other rally attendees were seriously injured in the attack. The shooter was killed by the Secret Service.

FBI Director Christopher Wray drew criticism on Wednesday for saying it was unclear whether Trump’s bleeding ear was the result of a bullet or shrapnel.

Testifying before the House Judiciary Committee, Wray was asked by House Speaker Jim Jordan (Republican of Ohio) whether all the bullets from the assassination attempt had been recovered.

“I don’t have that in front of me. I’m happy to come back to it and give it to you, assuming we already have that information,” Wray said. “I think there is some question with respect to former President Trump as to whether it was a bullet or shrapnel that hit his ear.”

Until Friday, federal officials investigating the attack on Trump had been largely vague in their reporting about Trump’s injuries.

Trump and his former White House physician, Ronnie Jackson, have repeatedly claimed that Trump was struck by a bullet. Last week, Jackson released a detailed account of how a bullet struck and injured the former president.

At the Republican National Convention last week, Trump said he “heard a loud whooshing sound and felt something hit my right ear really, really hard. I thought to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It could only be a bullet.'”

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