Back in November, we exposed the Elitist Media’s omission of critical details concerning Thomas Crooks, the would-be assassin who tried to take President Trump out at his 2024 rally in Butler, PA. We regret to inform you that the Elitist Media are at it again.
No evening newscast covered the new allegations, but NBC’s Today ran a related item. Here is part of that report:
WATCH: No Elitist Media evening newscast covered the explosive new details on the 2024 assassination attempt against President Trump in Butler, PA. NBC's @TODAYshow did cover it.
STEPHANIE GOSK: This morning, a clearer picture is emerging of the young gunman who nearly… pic.twitter.com/qeC9NrFRAp— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) September 17, 2026
STEPHANIE GOSK: This morning, a clearer picture is emerging of the young gunman who nearly assassinated President Trump at a 2024 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. This video shows Thomas Crooks walking through the crowd less than two hours before he opened fire from a rooftop using an AR15. According to newly released FBI documents a person attending the rally told federal investigators Crooks was making hateful comments about Trump. The documents reveal Crooks visited a gun range alone a day before the assassination attempt, shooting targets at a range of 100 yards. Crooks shot and killed Corey Comparatore and wounded two others including then-candidate Trump, before Crooks was killed by a Secret Service sniper.
Stephanie Gosk’s report does a good enough job of covering the bases as broken by The New York Post, to wit: the anonymous donor funding Crooks’ cremation, Crooks’ obsession with guns, and his general lack of emotion. This begs the question: why didn’t the evening news run it?
It’s not like they were pressed for time due to overwhelming powerful stories from which to choose from. ABC lead off last night with the Macklemore kerfuffle. Each of the newscasts did the usual nonlethal vehicular mishap filler. Tonight ABC and NBC reported Travis Kelce falling victim to a Ponzi scheme. ABC and CBS did the Ohio inmate that broke his handcuffs, throat-punched a sheriff’s deputy and bowled a couple of others over before getting tased at the courthouse door. ABC put BOTH of those stories on the A-block.
There is plenty of time to air this story but as was the case in November, there is a lack of will to do so. And we wonder what the Elitist Media’s compelling interest is in keeping this off the evening news - other than a refusal to air a story that might make President Trump look remotely sympathetic ahead of a critical midterm election.
As we said in November and do so again today: this omission is simply inexcusable.
Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on NBC’s Today on Wednesday, September 16th, 2026:
CRAIG MELVIN: There's some new information this morning about the attempt on President Trump's life at a Pennsylvania campaign rally back in 2024. Newly declassified FBI documents providing a clearer picture of the gunman and what drove his actions that day. NBC's Stephanie Gosk here in the studio with more on that story. Steph, good morning.
STEPHANIE GOSK: Hey Craig, good morning. That shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks was killed by a Secret Service sniper just moments after he fired multiple rounds at President Trump. Now the FBI has released over 600 pages detailing their investigation. It comes as we’re learning about an interview with Crooks' father and federal investigators that provides a timeline of his path to that Pennsylvania rooftop.
DONALD TRUMP: Take a look at what happened -- (SHOTS FIRED)
GOSK: This morning, a clearer picture is emerging of the young gunman who nearly assassinated President Trump at a 2024 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. This video shows Thomas Crooks walking through the crowd less than two hours before he opened fire from a rooftop using an AR15. According to newly released FBI documents a person attending the rally told federal investigators Crooks was making hateful comments about Trump. The documents reveal Crooks visited a gun range alone a day before the assassination attempt, shooting targets at a range of 100 yards. Crooks shot and killed Corey Comparatore and wounded two others including then-candidate Trump, before Crooks was killed by a Secret Service sniper. The president yesterday saying the investigation following the incident was mishandled and, quote, “this was all a Democrat plot.” The White House not providing any evidence to back up Trump's allegations.
FBI director Kash Patel asked about the investigation yesterday.
KASH PATEL: We've put out and provided all the information that we are lawfully able to release. We found no evidence that that individual was literally even speaking to any other human being other than his parents.
GOSK: According to documents Senator Chuck Grassley shared with The New York Post, Crooks’ father told the FBI his son developed an obsession with guns, describing his son as someone who rarely laughed or showed emotion, and had no known friends. His father also told investigators an anonymous donor paid for the cremation of his remains, according to the Post. The Butler shooting was the first of three Trump assassination attempts. This one led to an investigation with the final report blaming the Secret Service for a major security breakdown, including not securing the rooftop 400 feet away from Trump's podium.We reached out to Senator Grassley's office for the documents they said were shown in-person to The New York Post, but they did not share them with NBC News. They did confirm the reporting about the anonymous donor paying for Thomas Crooks’ cremation. Guys.
MELVIN: All right. Steph, thank you.
GOSK: You’re welcome.
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Thank you, Steph.
