MAGA infighting ignites over accusation Trump staged assassination

Donald Trump is assisted by guards during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

Infighting has erupted amongst conservatives online after a major voice in the MAGA media sphere expressed belief in the conspiracy theory claiming that President Donald Trump staged his 2024 assassination attempt.

This theory about the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, on the presidential campaign trail is not new, but has to date largely circulated among fringe left-wing sources. The accusation hinges on several aspects of the incident, including the lack of scar left on Trump's ear, the situational wherewithal needed to defiantly raise his fist afterward, and the fact that the alleged gunman had supported him in the past, leading some to suspect that it was staged for political gain in an election that had existential stakes for Trump.

Now, however, as Trump has made numerous decisions in his second term that have run afoul of his MAGA supporters, an increasing number of them have also begun to cast doubt on the official narrative surrounding his assassination attempt. One of the most prominent names so far has been far-right pundit and influencer, Milo Yiannopoulos.

"I hate myself for thinking it but dude that s——t wasn't real," Yiannopoulos wrote in a recent post to X, responding to another similarly skeptical user. "There was no assassination attempt. It didn't happen. I'm sorry it just didn't."

"As we learn more about the scam filled life of Donald Trump, why isn't there a serious investigation into the staged 'assassination' attempt in Butler, PA," another X anti-Trump Republican X user wrote in a post. "THAT was the moment when Trump stole the 2024 election. Get after it investigative journalists! America deserves the truth!"

"I’ve never re-watched this clip until now," Hannah Cox, a self-described libertarian-conservative and president of BASEDPolitics, wrote in response to another user sharing a clip of the attempt from a news broadcast. "Look at the people behind him and their reactions. No one on earth would sit there like that after a public shooting broke out. Compare this to the crowd and people around Charlie Kirk when he’s shot."

In response to these skeptical conservative voices, infighting has broken out as others attempt to push back on their skepticism.

"President of BASEDpolitics (who was never based, of couse) suggesting Trump staged his own assassination attempt," Jeremy Carl, a senior fellow at the Claremont Institute, posted in response to Cox. "These grifters and clowns can’t leave the scenes fast enough for me."

Another user, going by "Brick Suit," attempted to shut down these theories by sharing their own front row footage from the Butler event itself. Trump's combative White House communications director shared their post, adding, "For those of us who were there with POTUS at Butler, anyone saying it was staged truly needs to have their heads checked out because they have no sense of reality."

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