
Donald Trump Faces Backlash After Bragging About Surviving Assassination Attempt at Charlie Kirk's Ceremony: 'Unbelievable'

Donald Trump faced backlash after bragging about surviving an assassination attempt.
Oct. 15 2025, Published 11:43 a.m. ET
Donald Trump is once again at the center of controversy — this time for turning a solemn ceremony into a story about himself.
On Tuesday, October 14, the president took the stage at the White House to honor slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk with the Medal of Freedom. Instead of keeping the focus on Kirk, Trump shifted gears to brag about dodging the 2024 assassination attempts on his life.
While speaking about political violence in America, he accused “the left” of ramming vehicles at law enforcement and firing sniper rifles at ICE agents — “and me.”
“But I made a turn at a good time. I made a turn at a good time — I turned to the right,” Trump said, referring to the split-second move that saved him from a bullet fired by would-be assassin Thomas Michael Crooks in Pennsylvania last year.
“Charlie couldn’t believe it, actually,” he added.

Donald Trump faced backlash after bragging about surviving an assassination attempt.
His comments, made while standing next to Kirk’s grieving widow, Erika Kirk, quickly drew outrage online.
“He’s bragging he’s so much better at dodging bullets than Charlie. Unbelievable,” one political observer posted on X.
Another user asked, “Why don’t MAGA supporters find this offensive?”
“Repulsive!!! It was a scene for Trump to move in a certain direction to act like he was being shot at vs someone who died from a real shooter! He has no emotional intelligence!!! Even if it were true, Trump saying he was lucky he moved the right way to dodge a bullet…wild!!” another user fumed.
“At this point he’s going to hire someone to shoot him just so he can brag about it if he lives,” one critic sarcastically wrote.

The president made the comments while honoring Charlie Kirk at the White House.
The assassination attempt Donald mentioned took place in July 2024, when Thomas opened fire from a rooftop during his rally in Butler, Penn. While one bullet grazed Donald’s ear, another tragically struck and killed an attendee. Secret Service agents fatally shot Crooks at the scene.
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More recently, another man, Ryan Routh, was found guilty of attempting to assassinate Donald in a separate incident in Florida last year. The 59-year-old faced several charges, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and illegal firearm possession. He could spend life in prison.

Many criticized him for being insensitive during the solemn ceremony.
According to reports, after the verdict was read on September 23, Ryan tried to stab himself in the neck inside the courtroom but was stopped by authorities. His daughter also had an emotional outburst during the hearing.
As OK! previously reported, Ryan never fired a shot during his failed attempt in September 2024. Secret Service agents found him hiding near the fifth hole of the Trump International Golf Club in Florida while Donald was playing. He fled the scene by car but was caught about an hour later on Interstate 95.

Donald Trump referenced his near-death experience from the 2024 rally shooting.
During his trial, prosecutors revealed evidence that Ryan had been stalking Donald for days before the incident and had planned an escape route, possibly flying to Mexico.
In his closing statement, Ryan told the court an assassination “was never going to happen,” adding, “If the attempted assassination was not taken, it is not an attempt.”