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through that area. do any of the dignities, anybody working with the white house, with the campaign staff, anybody like that, with a pass through that area or is it only for attendees? >> no, absolutely, delegates will be passing through there. of course, for donald trump and his motorcade -- they for marco rubio

elected officials and delegates, they will be walking through the soft perimeter area here. they had made the case that they are in the position, a again, we have seen a law enforcement from the likes of the department of homeland security, the fbi, ohio law enforcement, a whole hands on rc deck effort here, and even this evening, we can tell you we have seen a ramped up security presence here, and i think this is a moment, this is not the first national convention that republicans have gone through, and they understand the necessity to understand the security of all of those coming here. governor evers, the democratic governor of wisconsin did call for having that soft perimeter be banning firearms, local law

enforcement said that is not their prerogative, that that is state law that is on the books. when i asked the u.s. secret service about whether they considered expanding that hard zone here, they said the answer was no, again, they feel like they are in the position. of course, tomorrow afternoon is when we expect the gavel to come down and all of the delegates to make their way inside of this arena in that role call to make donald trump the formal nominee of the republican party, to commence tomorrow afternoon. >> very quickly, have you spoken with anybody who is an early bird who wanted to scope everything out before going in tomorrow ngthat suggested they were a little nervous about security? >> it's definitely on the minds of folks, and i talked to some delegates who said they are energized for this and they believe this is only going to galvanize the support around donald trump even more, but i think that it is a reflective moment, i was talking to somebody who has been a friend of donald trump's, and somebody

who is working with this convention here this evening, and of course, when somebody's life comes that close as an inch, it is a tough moment. and there is a lot of reflection that has been taking place, and understanding that there is a serious incident that killed an individual yesterday at a political event. and regardless of anything, i think that it is a well understood belief here in the rs united states that attending a t political event and being able to hear the opinions and beliefs of a political candidate is something that should come without violence. and that was not only a direct threat, but a failure of security on saturday in pennsylvania, and one that everybody is intent on ensuring that does not happen again here in milwaukee. >> i will tell you, we hear the phrase someone coming within an inch of their life, i think

that is being generous in this case, i think the former , president came within a couple hairs. it was very, very close, absolutely extraordinary. vaughn hillyard, thank you so much, appreciate you. joining me right now, george in butler, pennsylvania, that is where the attempted assassination of former president donald d trump unfold on saturday. george, what have you found out about the gunman? >> reporter: yeah, alex, i r think it is important to reset right now. as the headlines and focus shift to the rnc, we are still here at the epicenter of a dark day in american history where this alleged assassin tried to take out the former president. and here, we are starting to get a clear picture of the alleged shooter that authorities identified as id thomas matthew crooks. we know he is 20 years old, we know at this point, the parties don't have a motive. we believe he acted alone, we discovered he was a member of a local gun club and a former classmate of his described him

as a loner, as someone who was constantly picked on, maybe in the way that he dressed with the really couldn't characterize that more than just that. he was someone who was seen as a bit of an outcast. here in this community, as people began to process and grieve, bwe start to see some the signs of normalcy returning. just moments ago, the road here that was blocking access to where the rally stage was just reopened. it doesn't mean that this is now an open scene and people can start going back into that area, but it just gives you a sense that things are slowly starting to evolve here in butler.o as you see on your screen there, the fbi identifying the shooter as thomas crooks. one of the things they also looked into was his voting password we know he is from bethel park, pennsylvania which is about 30 or 40 minutes from where we are here in butler. he was a registered republican, but we also learned that you donated $50 to a progressive turnout project, a democratic group back in 2021, so again, some more information that is

kind of conflicting about where his ideology may have stood. as i mentioned earlier, we spoke with a classmate of his who described a very conflicted individual, someone they couldn't really quite characterize, but they said something was just a bit off. take a listen to what they told us. x yeah, he was bullied almost every day. >> in what way, can you explain? >> i mean, he would sit alone at lunch. he was just an outcast. you know how kids are nowadays, they're going to see someone like that and they're going to target him because they think it is funny or whatever. s that's the best way i can describe it. and it is honestly kind of sad. i don't want to say this is what provoked it, but you never know. >> you said he was a loner? >> yeah, i want to say he was a loner more because he was just -- he was quiet, like he was just bullied, like he was bullied so much. so much. >> so, alex, what else are we

learning at this hour? well, we know from an fbi briefing from earlier today that they did retrieve his cell phone and that is now being processed at the fbi lab in quantico. they also mentioned a suspicious device that was found in his vehicle. they say it was rudimentary in its design, they couldn't quite classify it as an positive, but that device also at quantico. along with a weapon, a r style rifle as described by authorities. all of that being processed and all of it hopefully helping authorities piece together the motive, and the big question of all, how this alleged assassin got so close to the president that he was able to take that shot, not to mention killing one person and wounding two others. on that note, today, pennsylvania state police identifying those victims. they identified the victim who was killed as 50-year-old corey compertatore, who governor josh shapiro today classified as a girl dad, a firefighter, and one thing that he wanted the family and people of pennsylvania to know, that he

died a hero because he actually tried to protect his family as those shots were ringing out. at this point, we are learning it was possibly up to eight shots that were fired from the weapon, there is still some discrepancy on that number. the other two individuals identified, 57-year-old david -y dodge and 74-year-old james copenhaver. they are in stable condition at a hospital in pittsburgh. we have been out to their families to see if there's anything more they can provide. we will bring that to you if we learn more. but again, alex, as i mentioned, the road your opening. we know the investigation is comprehensive, we know there are still many questions, and we know this community is going to be reeling for some time as they come to grips and come to terms with what transpired here and what comes next. >> yeah, 100%, and it was also difficult to hear that fellow ic classmate in the high school of thomas matthew crooks, the description there. we have also learned from av public records that both of his

parents are licensed professional counselors. of must have been some hard times during those high school years in that home, that is for sure. thank you very much, george. two of course, president biden addressed the nation in a prime time address in the oval office sunday night. joining me with more right now is gary. good evening to you. what was the tone of the president's speech, how would you classify that? >> hey there, alex, this was not a campaign speech, this was not the president trying to e prove he could do the job like we have seen so much of over the past few weeks, what this was was the commander-in-chief trying to heal what has so clearly become a deeply divided nation. he mentioned a number of d moments of political violence over the past several years, from the congressional baseball game shooting to january 6th to the attack on paul pelosi out in san francisco, and he really called for a moment of national unity and to lower the temperature. here is what he had to say: >> we debate and disagree, we compare and contrast the character and the candidates, the records, the issues, the

agenda, the vision for america, but in america, we resolve our differences at the ballot box. >> now, what i found remarkable about these remarks, alex, is these are so similar to the remarks he gave back in 2020, the night he was called the winter of the 2020 election. i was there in the parking lot in wilmington, delaware. when he was giving his remarks, he called once again to lower the temperature. he said americans should listen to each other and be good neighbors to each other, and hb for now, it seems at least, both sides are on the same page here. president trump saying to the washington examiner in an interview late tonight that he is actually ripping up his speech for the convention that he is supposed to give on thursday and he is going to be calling for unity. it is not necessarily going to be a tax on joe biden like it may have previously been. clearly, as we are seeing rl tonight with the oval office address, president biden is on s the same page. >> 100%. today was a meday where the president and the vice president really toned down anything with regard to a campaign.

how about this week, granted the rnc begins, that his campaign gets into full swing for the republicans. what we know about the president and vice president's plans? >> a few changes here, president biden was scheduled to go down to austin, texas for the 60th anniversary of the civil rights act, he is no longer going to be doing that tomorrow, that will be rescheduled. he will still be during the interview with lester holt that will air in a prime time special on nbc, he will be doing that from the white house. he is expected to have e a briefing as well tomorrow with the vice president and homeland security officials, that will happen sometime tomorrow morning. to vice president kamala harris was supposed to go down to florida for a number of events down in the palm beach area. i think the campaign found perhaps that wasn't the most appropriate location for events tomorrow, so that has been rescheduled as well. and their ads for the campaign have also been taken off the air temporarily. you will remember recently, a huge $50 million ad by they did for the campaign to put some ads on tv, attacking the former

president, those have been paused. we are not sure how long they will stay paused, alex spent >> i guess lester holt will not travel all the way to texas, instead we'll just go from new york to washington. we will see you again, thank you so much. coming up, more on how the rnc is preparing convention security as the agency faces growing scrutiny. agency faces growing scrutiny. good to go on a whim. with cabenuva, there's no pausing for daily hiv pills. for adults who are undetectable, cabenuva is the only complete, long-acting hiv treatment you can get every other month. it's two injections from a healthcare provider. just 6 times a year. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic to its ingredients, or if you're taking certain medicines, which may interact with cabenuva. serious side effects include allergic reactions, post-injection reactions, liver problems, and depression. if you have a rash and other allergic reaction symptoms, stop cabenuva and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have liver or kidney problems, mental health concerns and if you are pregnant,

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the exact role the secret service and local authorities played securing the shooting scene in butler, pennsylvania certainly coming under intense scrutiny. here's house speaker mike johnson: >> congress will do a full investigation of the tragedy yesterday to determine where there were lapses in security and anything else that the american people need to know and deserve to know. >> now, more than 24 hours later, the incident is being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism. the suspect who was killed by the secret service has been identified by the fbi as 20- year-old thomas matthew crooks,

but we still don't know a motive for his actions or details of how he planned and carried out the attack that wounded former president trump, killed one spectator, and critically injured two others. joining me now, frank, former fbi director for counterintelligence, he is also an nbc news national security analyst. also joining us, marcia espinoza, former department of homeland security top spokeswoman specializing in the u.s. secret service. i'm very glad to have you both here with me. frank, here we are 30 hours later, what stands out to you about saturday's attack and how a lone gunman was able to fire off multiple rounds at a former u.s. president? >> well, the disbelief is starting to wear off, and now of course, we have been analyzing this and gathering facts. any analysis after an event like this is kind of like the old-fashioned polaroid picture. you hold it in your hand and you slowly watch the hazy picture sharpen and come into focus. and what are we sensing and hearing from sources and

reporting? this may come down to an overreliance on local or state police at these rallies. and i think what is being exposed here and we will come to learn eventually is how thinly spread the secret service has been for quite a while. add into it that this weekend, a very significant portion of secret service agents are in milwaukee for the rnc. and so, they were stretched even more thin, more reliant on local and state police. but look, the motto of the secret service, how they describe their mission is zero fail. and yes, this was a failure of the secret service. >> yeah. so, marcia, your reaction to the shooter getting that semi automatic rifle so close to this event, and first of all, you have to look at the open setting, right? what do you think went wrong, what did the secret service miss? >> so, the secret service is responsible for coordinating the security for all of these

events, but that doesn't mean that they cover every piece of it, right? they are sort of like the conductor of an orchestra for this, so they bring together all these assets and local law enforcement to help protect the venue. and it appears this was outside their perimeter. so, i think that all of these questions need to be answered, including why there was a line of sight vulnerability and how he was able to get there. was it because someone is stationed there wasn't at their station at the time or was it because of a lack of communication? all that will need to still be found out, but what we do know is the secret service was looking in that direction. there is video of the sharpshooter ready and aimed in that direction, so something tipped them off, so they knew they were looking in that direction. secret service is amazing at what they do, and i have no doubt that they will be -- or

they have been looking into this to find out what happened, and then change any protocols if necessary moving forward. >> yeah, but marcia, i'm going to ask my director, pj, if you can put backup that graphic, and you look at this setting, is this just a nightmare to try to secure? you're saying it is the secret service, the conductor of this security orchestra, if you will, but you have got police, you have fbi, you have all sorts of different entities there on the scene. can the secret service possibly get every single inch of that area? squared away and secured? >> that is why they relied on all of these other assets, including local law enforcement and technology. it is incredibly difficult to have a venue open to the public and secure against every single possible threat. it's just so hard, especially with the outdoor rallies, they

present enormous security challenges, given the vulnerability of high-power weapons that can reach that far. >> so, frank, we have heard from at least one witness who claims that he watched the shooter with that gun, that was a semiautomatic rifle, that is not just something you can conceal in your pocket, watched that shooter for several minutes before he actually fired. take a listen to what you said. >> we were pointing at him, the police were down there running around on the ground, we were like, hey, man, there is a guy on the roof with a rifle. the police are like, what? they didn't know what was going on. right here on the roof, we see him. he is crawling. >> so, look, marcia referenced the fact that something caught their attention. your thoughts about how important an eyewitness like this and other eyewitness accounts will be to the investigation? >> invaluable.

clearly, the fbi in their investigation will be interviewing these witnesses like this gentleman, and also the independent investigation that president biden referred to, that he is ordering, that will be critical to get a hold of these names, contact numbers for these witnesses, because clearly, there is a breakdown in communication. look, you can almost repeat that on record, for every failure that we know of, there is going to be a communications issue. by that, i mean those officers should have been on the radio saying, we have got a problem on the roof. then we have got reports reportedly confirmed by nbc news that an officer went up on the roof because of concerns of spectators who saw the shooter, came back down off the roof, he should have gotten on his radio and said, shooter on the roof. or given the engagement signal. and if that had happened correctly, the secret service sniper would have taken that shooter out before he could crank off a round. >> so, the conversations,

marcia, that are happening right now, what are these conversations like? what are the questions being asked and how hard it is going to be to get answers? >> there are 70 questions being asked right now, and with any sort of crisis situation, there is a lot of misinformation and a lot of confusion in the early hours. so, i imagine that's why secret service is being very careful about the information that they are putting out. they want to gather all of the information and make sure that it's correct, rather than put out something in factual and have to change it later. but we have seen president biden in the room with his homeland security advisers, including the secretary of homeland security, which oversees secret service, and the director of secret service, and their number two there, who are i am sure getting asked very tough questions by the president to figure out what happened here, what do we know, and what we need to change

moving forward? if anything? >> you know, frank was suggesting that there is a lack of staffing, if you will, for the secret service right now. how much of a problem do you think that is, marcia? >> well, the secret service, it takes a while to train and to go through the program and to become an agent. so, they are constantly recruiting and constantly trying to get more agents and staff. that's been out there quite some time. but look, the secret service cannot be in every place all at once. that's why when they do these events, they partner with local law enforcement and other federal agencies to secure everything. they just don't have the assets to do this for every single event for all of their protect he is point that is a normal -- that is a normal course of business for them, to partner up -- there is a ton of preparation that takes place

before any of these events, big or small. they go through every single detail, they are swept by police dogs, by sometimes chemical detection pieces. so, so much goes into these events. i really can't stress that enough. >> yeah, they do do the best they can. frank, with rnc getting underway later on today in milwaukee, what kind of an impact do you think saturday's shooting is going to have on security there, and also extending for the election season, are you surprised the secret service has said we don't plan to change what we have done in terms of preparing for this? if that is the case, frank, is it because it is a closed arena? is it easier for them to guarantee security inside that, unlike what happened in butler, in that setting? >> so, i was taken aback by the posture today at secret service

for the rnc, as i don't think it is the best thing, the best message to send that mate, we are not doing anything extra here. on the plus side, this has been designated a national security special event, which it should be, and by the way, january 6th should have been a national security event. that means the entire toolkit of the u.s. government, including classify measures, are available for an event. but essentially, the question you're asking is, look, is the secret service seating the outside and the perimeter and saying, yeah, okay, we are not going to handle that necessarily, but it is an indoor venue, we have got indoors. they're very good at indoors, but outside is what concerns me. we are dealing with the state of wisconsin, the state of wisconsin has a lot that you can't tell a u.s. citizen not to carry a weapon, even in a designated soft security zone. so, we are going to have this weird situation where it is quite likely that people in the

free-speech areas, designated two spots and a parade route, are going to be armed. and they might go through metal detection to get into the free- speech area, but if they have a gun, they're still going to be allowed. this is kind of ludicrous, to be quite honest with you. i think they should be taking extra measures and rethinking the free-speech areas at a minimum. >> i am right there with you. i don't know if you are in my conversation with vaughn hillyard, he was saying the same thing. this is an open carry state, it is extraordinary. you have delegates, all sorts of people, maybe not the nominee , no, they will have their own security, but i was rather stunned to know that open carry laws bring the guns in, they can't be stopped, it's the law. all right, it has been great talking with both of you, marcia, frank, thank you both so much, appreciate you. coming up, how people helped others amid the fear and confusion during the attack at trump's rally. at trump's rally. to help manage blood sugar response. uniquely designed with carbsteady. glucerna. bring on the day.

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as we continue our coverage on the assassination attempt of donald trump, details are emerging of rally goers who put their own lives at risk to help others get to safety. here is tom llamas with some of their stories. >> reporter: tonight, a nation in shock while a community unites in mourning. >> we need to all come together as a human race, you know? we need to help each other out. >> reporter: what led to saturday's senseless act of violence, we may never know, but at that rally, another picture emerging, heroes who jumped in to help the shot and injured without hesitation. >> i was there with friends, i heard several gunshots. the man beside me suffered a gunshot wound to the head. i helped carry the man out of the bleachers. >> reporter: local firefighter corey compertatore at the rally with his family, making the ultimate sacrifice, shielding his wife and daughters on the gunfire, killed while looking out for his loved ones. >> corey died a hero, corey was

the very best of us. >> reporter: others jumped into action, too, like e.r. dr. jim sweetland. >> your medical training kicked in, right? >> reporter: and he told me the story of a veteran who saw him covered in blood from the victims he was caring for, and offered to help him. >> he was covered in blood, i give this guy from and discredit, was an army combat veteran, he came up to me and i said, brother, there is blood on your face. he gave me his water bottle, i wash it off. he put his hand on my shoulder and said, are you okay, brother? >> likely a moment you're never going to forget. >> never. that guy was an american who was helping me, and to me, that is america. >> our thanks to tom llamas for that report. coming up, a new report on how donald trump is changing up his speech at the republican national convention this week. national convention this week.

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in the wake of his attempted assassination, former president donald trump arrived in milwaukee earlier sunday evening for the republican national convention. it is set to kick off later on this afternoon. trump has reportedly told the washington examiner that he is rewriting his convention speech to focus on unity instead of on president joe biden. earlier, the secret service said there are no changes to their security plan for the

event and there are no known threats against rnc or anyone in attendance. after 18 months of preparation, thousands of republicans, top politicians, delegates, celebrities, and voters have descended on the city for the four day convention, all in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on the presumptive republican nominee. about 4000 law enforcement officers from across the country will oversee the massive convention, but when asked if the secret service is planning to expand security operations, here is what the rnc coordinator had to say: >> is the secret service currently anticipating are currently planning to expand the perimeter? >> we are not anticipating any changes to our current security plan. >> in the run to the convention and after saturday's assassination attempt, questions were circulating about whether people would be allowed to carry guns in those areas surrounding the secret service perimeter, and milwaukee's police chief addressed that question on sunday: >> in regards to the ability to

carry a firearm outside of the inner perimeter, again, state law allows for the particular right to carry a firearm. we as a city cannot legislate out of that. we have to respect the second amendment right to carry your firearm, especially in regards to open carry or carry and conceal with a license. questioning me now is jonathan alter, msnbc contributor and good friend. jonathan, i'm going to ask you a couple questions, i will get to the concealed carry weapons and just a moment, but with former president trump saying he is rewriting his rnc speech to focus on unity instead of president biden, talk about that strategy. do you think it will be effective for him? and what kind of rhetoric would you expect to hear from him? >> i think it will be very effective for him. you know, he is going into this convention from a position of unbelievable strength, that iconic photograph of him at that rally, which will be the

centerpiece of his campaign to return to the white house, that picture, the image, it is very, very helpful politically, however frightening it was personally in the moment. and i am reminded a little bit of when former president bolsonaro of brazil was stabbed during his first presidential campaign, it helped him a lot. but it is also very important to understand that this is not necessarily decisive in this presidential election, and i'm going to go back in history a little bit for you, alex, to 1912 when a former president, theodore roosevelt, was trying to do what donald trump is trying to do, make a comeback. he had left the white house four years earlier, he had turned over the white house

william howard taft, changed his mind, decided he wanted to get back into the white house, and he ran against taft and woodrow wilson for president, and he was shot at a rally when he was giving a speech, quite similar to this, except the bullet hit him in the chest. and fortunately, he had a thick set of papers and that stopped the bullet enough, so that he just experienced a flesh wound and was able to complete his speech. but i think it is important to understand that even though he also emerged from that incident with almost superpowers in 1912, he went on to lose that election to woodrow wilson that fall. so, this is a very, very significant political boost, which he will exploit in his speech on thursday night. it is very bad news for the democrats, who almost certainly need a new candidate if they

want to have any chance of winning this election, but it is not entirely decisive by itself. >> that is extraordinary, that theodore roosevelt story and the fact that he finished that speech. i can't quite get over that, but he did, and that is extraordinary. but let's talk about the open carry state there in wisconsin. your thoughts on the secret service saying they're not going to expand security measures at the rnc, guns will be openly allowed outside of that interest secured perimeter. is that wise at this point? i mean, you have a lot of people calling into question about that. >> look, it is state law. and the secret service -- the republicans in wisconsin and elsewhere have made this bed in terms of security, and now they have to lie in it. same thing with the ar-15s. so, this is a terribly tragic event, but let's be clear about it, the former president was shot by an ar-15, which joe

biden got successfully banned about 25 years ago, and then when former president bush came in, they were allowed again. same thing with these state laws, same things have been going on at the state level. remember, donald trump himself, after the pulse nightclub shooting, his reaction to that shooting was: if people had been armed inside the nightclub, the shooting wouldn't have happened. so, this is a political party that believes in packing heat. and i'm actually surprised that at the last convention in 2016, i was surprised that the republicans did not ask the secret service, as they were entitled to do, please do not have magnetometers at the doors to the cleveland convention, because we believe -- our velocity -- philosophy is people should be armed.

this is absolutely not going to change at the republican convention, for reasons of state law, which the secret service can't do anything about, and also because their party believes this. >> let me ask you, and let me also just say with regard to the ar-15s style rifle weapon that was used, nbc news has not confirmed the details of it. there is presumption that it is that, it has yet to be confirmed, i just want to go on record with that. let me ask you quickly about the group called coalition to march on the rnc 2024. it is going to continue with protests as planned. what are your thoughts on demonstrators on either side of the aisle and their ability to peacefully be able to exercise their first amendment rights during this anxious time? >> well, that is part of what this nation was founded on, the right to peacefully assemble, in our constitution, and so, i think it is fine, as long that it is peacefully assemble. that is the word that is so central to this whole question. people have the right to make

their views known in areas that are designated for that, but they have to keep it peaceful. and i think that the protesters , if they are being smart about it, will make sure that their own people do stay peaceful, because if they don't, it will be on them. and not on the police or anybody else who are trying to keep -- and this applies to pro- palestinian protesters who are expected to show up at the chicago democratic national convention. >> absolutely. all right, my friend, jonathan alter, thank you for joining us at this hour. usually, we are talking on the afternoons on the weekend. thank you for the early morning hours. so far, special report on the assassination attempt of former president donald trump will continue after the break. . to show you how it's done. ♪♪ for a great low rate, go with the general.

in our next hour, the latest from capitol hill and what lawmakers are planning to do in the wake of the assassination attempt on donald trump.

plus, new nbc reporting on the security vulnerabilities prior to trump's rally in butler, pennsylvania, what went wrong and what measures are being taken at this week's republican national convention in milwaukee, and why the secret service is saying it does not plan to expand security there. you are watching our special coverage of the assassination attempt of former president trump. mpt of former president trump. i can't! i'm just telling everyone!...hey! buy one pair, get one free for back to school. visionworks. see the difference.

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good evening, everyone. approaching 1:00 a.m. on the east coast, 10:00 p.m. at west. i'm alex continuing our special coverage of the assassination attempt on former president trump. this morning, the presumptive gop nominee is in milwaukee, where, in just a few hours, the republican national convention will get underway. later in the week, he will officially accept his party's nomination. he is also expected to announce his vice presidential choice. a little more than a day ago, the former president was in the crosshairs of a potential assassin's bullet, taking a flesh wound to his right ear. the attack in butler, pennsylvania claimed the life of a man attending the rally. two others were injured and remain hospitalized. this morning, a multi agency investigation is underway into the incident. the fbi is investigating the shooting as an act of domestic terrorism. the secret service is, today, facing tough questions about how the government was able to gain access to a nearby roof