FBI director stirs controversy with Trump bullet skepticism

FBI Director Christopher Wray kicked a hornet’s nest with remarks this week casting doubt on former President Trump’s claims that he was hit by a bullet in his July 13 assassination try. 

Talking earlier than the Home Judiciary Committee, Wray stated that “with respect to former President Trump, there’s some query about whether or not or not it’s a bullet or shrapnel that, you realize, that hit his ear.” 

In one other alternate, Wray advised Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) both a bullet or a chunk of shrapnel “is what grazed [Trump’s] ear.”

Wray’s remarks drew the ire of Trump, who quickly after the capturing stated he had been hit by a bullet on the Butler, Pa., rally, and has since framed his survival as an act of divine intervention.

The previous president, in a prolonged post on Truth Social late Thursday, insisted he was certainly hit by a bullet and slammed the FBI as having “misplaced the arrogance” of the US. 

“No, it was, sadly, a bullet that hit my ear, and hit it onerous. There was no glass, there was no shrapnel,” Trump posted. “The hospital known as it a ‘bullet wound to the ear,’ and that’s what it was. No marvel the as soon as storied FBI has misplaced the arrogance of America!”

Trump, who nominated Wray as FBI director in 2017, additionally claimed the company “by no means even checked!” as to what precipitated his damage.

Nonetheless, Trump has not launched medical information, and Wray’s feedback have elevated requires him to show what precipitated his damage. 

“Donald Trump is clearly utilizing this as a part of his marketing campaign. And if he is mendacity about whether or not he was truly shot, that is one thing that the American individuals ought to know,” stated Rep Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), according to CBS News reporter Scott MacFarlane. 

“I’ve waited some time to say this however the burden is now on Trump to indicate he was shot,” Juliette Kayyem, a former undersecretary for Homeland Safety, wrote on X. 

“I can condemn the assassination and nonetheless demand fact, particularly since Trump is now politicizing taking a bullet,” she added. “Wray has now opened the door; this isn’t a conspiracy idea. Wray, identified for actual phrasing and being cautious, did not say this on accident. He’s begging us to ask.”

The FBI is main the legal investigation into the capturing, which killed one rally-goer and significantly injured two others earlier than the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper.

Video of the capturing confirmed Trump attain for his ear after gunfire might be heard. He shortly geese to the bottom and is swarmed by Secret Service brokers. Upon attending to his ft, Trump’s ear has visibly begun to bleed, with blood streaking throughout his face as he’s led off the stage.

Trump stated later that night time he was “shot with a bullet that pierced the higher a part of my proper ear,” including that he heard “a whizzing sound, photographs, and instantly felt the bullet ripping via the pores and skin,” in keeping with a publish on his Reality Social platform.

A New York Instances video analysis revealed Friday appears to help Trump’s assertions that it was seemingly a bullet, not particles, that struck his ear.

And speaker Mike Johnson advised NBC Information on Thursday that he’s “seen the evaluation, we’ve heard it from a number of sources in several angles {that a} bullet went via [Trump’s] ear.”

Johnson additionally accused Wray of getting a “credibility downside.”

“His  responses had been apparently inaccurate and he was not forthcoming with a number of the data that we might count on,” he stated. “There’s a variety of frustration and concern concerning the management with these businesses.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), rating member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and fierce defender of Trump, on Friday despatched a letter to Wray pushing him to appropriate his testimony “instantly.”

“I urge you to right away appropriate your assertion and acknowledge that President Trump was hit by a bullet reasonably than glass or shrapnel,” Graham wrote. “As head of the FBI, you shouldn’t be creating confusion about such issues, because it additional undercuts the company’s credibility with thousands and thousands of People.”

And Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), Trump’s former doctor, stated there’s “completely no proof” that Trump was struck by something aside from a bullet.

“Congress ought to appropriate the report as confirmed by each the hospital and myself. Director Wray is improper and inappropriate to counsel the rest,” Jackson wrote in a letter he posted to Reality Social Friday. 

Jackson had beforehand launched a notice that stated a bullet was “lower than 1 / 4 of an inch from getting into [Trump’s] head, and struck the highest of his proper ear.”

However no official medical analysis from a health care provider or hospital who handled Trump within the rapid aftermath of the assault has been publicly launched, with most updates trickling out via members of the family describing the damage in broad phrases. 

State and federal authorities businesses additionally haven’t launched an official account about what precipitated the damage.

FBI investigators have reportedly asked to interview Trump as they decide what precisely hit his ear, and are analyzing metallic fragments discovered close to the stage on the rally location.

In an announcement, the bureau asserted it had been “constant and clear” because the day of the incident that it was an assassination try that resulted in Trump’s damage and the demise of 1 rally attendee, and that the investigation continues to be open.

“This was a heinous assault and the FBI is devoting huge sources to study the whole lot doable concerning the shooter and what led to his act of violence,” the bureau stated. “The FBI’s Capturing Reconstruction Crew continues to look at proof from the scene, together with bullet fragments, and the investigation stays ongoing.”

The Trump marketing campaign didn’t reply to a request for remark from The Hill.