Former President Donald Trump, in his Thursday night speech at the Republican National Convention, paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, the firefighter who was shot and killed during an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last weekend.
“Tragically, a shooter took the life of our fellow man, Cory Comperatore, a man everyone tells me is incredible,” Trump said.
Comperatore’s fire helmet and jacket were on display on the stage next to Trump, who walked over and kissed the helmet before calling for a moment of silence for the convention crowd.
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump embraces the firefighter’s uniform of Corey Comperatore as he speaks during the fourth day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 18, 2024. Getty Images
Comperatore, 50, was attending a Trump rally with his family on Saturday when a 20-year-old gunman opened fire from the roof of a building a few hundred feet from the stage where Trump was speaking. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro previously told reporters that Comperatore “jumped in to protect his family,” calling him a “hero,” a sentiment echoed by Trump.
“He was a fine man, a highly respected former fire chief,” Trump said. “… He sacrificed his life acting as a human shield to protect people from bullets flying around. He was flying over people’s heads and got shot. He was a fine man.”
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Two other attendees, David Duch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74, were seriously wounded but survived, while Trump was also wounded by a bullet lodged in his right ear.
“I heard a loud whoosh and then I felt something hit me hard in my right ear,” Trump said Thursday. “I thought to myself, ‘Wow, what is that? That must be a bullet,’ and I put my right hand to my ear and I put it down and it was covered in blood.”
Comperatore is survived by his wife and two daughters. In a statement Thursday, his family praised him as “a beloved father, husband and friend to many in the Butler area.”
Pennsylvania Rep. Marci Mustello, who said Comperatore served as fire chief for the Buffalo Township Fire Department, called him a “dedicated public servant” and “a true American hero.”
President Trump said more than $6 million had been raised for the families of the three shooting victims.
Comperatore’s fire jacket had his last name misspelled – an “a” was missing – and CBS News learned from the Buffalo Township Fire Department that this was done on purpose, due to a character limit on the jacket.
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