Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt
Former president claims shooting was aimed at removing him from election, FBI finds no connections
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt
Photograph: abc 7 Chicago (embedded from source)
What this story says
- President Donald Trump claimed the assassination attempt against him in Butler, Pennsylvania, was a 'Democratic Plot' intended to prevent him from participating in the election.
- Trump made the allegations on social media, stating that new information had been found regarding the investigation.
- FBI Director Kash Patel testified that the FBI found no evidence linking the suspected shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, to any other individuals.
- Trump did not present any evidence to support his assertion of a broader conspiracy.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 11 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 12 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
62/100
Craft
77/100
Hype
68/100
12 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
Only 1 of the 11 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
President Donald Trump alleged that the 2024 assassination attempt against him in Butler, Pennsylvania, was a "Democratic Plot" designed to remove him from the election. The incident resulted in one fatality and two injuries. Trump made the claim on social media, stating that new documents related to the investigation had recently been discovered. He also criticised FBI Director Christopher Wray, whom he had nominated during his first term, suggesting Wray should face consequences for his handling of the investigation.
FBI Director Kash Patel testified before a Senate Oversight Committee that the FBI had investigated potential connections between the suspected shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and other individuals. Patel stated that no such connections were found, and that the investigation indicated the shooter had limited contact with others, primarily residing with his parents. Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that new information about the shooter's background was provided by the FBI in response to a Senate inquiry, but he did not offer evidence of a wider plot.
Disagreement on evidence
President Trump alleged the assassination attempt was a 'Democratic Plot' without offering evidence to support this claim. Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that new information about the shooter was produced by the FBI in response to a Senate inquiry, but declined to present evidence of the alleged plot.
What the coverage left out
No right-rated outlet ran this story. The digests from the left and centre-rated outlets did not mention reports from Fox News and The New York Post that federal documents purportedly show the suspect used the alias 'Bob Dole' to order suspicious packages, or that his body was cremated and paid for by an anonymous donor.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 15 Sept 2026, 22:45, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
6 rated outlets
- Left-rated reports led with Trump's claim that the assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' and that it was aimed at removing him from the election. These reports highlighted that Trump offered no evidence to support his assertion. They also included testimony from FBI Director Kash Patel that the FBI found no connections between the suspect and others. The reports noted Trump's criticism of FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Centre
4 rated outlets
- Centre-rated reports focused on President Trump's claim that the assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' and that it was intended to remove him from the election. These reports also stated that Trump did not provide evidence for his claim. They included FBI Director Kash Patel's testimony that no connections were found between the suspect and other individuals. The reports also mentioned Trump's criticism of FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Right
1 rated outlet
We have not written our reading of the right coverage of this story. The right-rated outlets that ran it are listed below.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt?
- Of the 11 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 55% are rated left, 36% are rated centre, 9% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 12. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 11 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt biased?
- Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt is one event reported by 12 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Trump alleges 'Democrat Plot' in assassination attempt?
- 12 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What did Donald Trump allege about the assassination attempt?
- President Donald Trump alleged that the assassination attempt against him in Butler, Pennsylvania, was a 'Democratic Plot' aimed at removing him from the election. He made these claims on social media, stating that new information had been discovered regarding the investigation.
- What did the FBI find regarding the suspect?
- FBI Director Kash Patel testified that the FBI investigated connections between the suspected shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and other individuals but found none. The investigation suggested the shooter had limited contact with others, primarily residing with his parents.
- Did Donald Trump provide evidence for his claims?
- No, Donald Trump did not offer any evidence to support his claim that the assassination attempt was part of a broader 'Democratic Plot'. Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that new information about the shooter was provided by the FBI in response to a Senate inquiry but did not present evidence of a conspiracy.
Read it at the source
12 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
6- Trump says in social post that 2024 assassination try was political plot (opens USA Today in a new tab)
- Trump says in social post that 2024 assassination try was political plot (opens Detroit Free Press in a new tab)
Detroit Free Press — is Detroit Free Press biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens abc30 News in a new tab)
abc30 News — is abc30 News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens abc11 Raleigh in a new tab)
abc11 Raleigh — is abc11 Raleigh biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens ABC 13 Houston in a new tab)
ABC 13 Houston — is ABC 13 Houston biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens ABC 6 Philadelphia in a new tab)
ABC 6 Philadelphia — is ABC 6 Philadelphia biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
4- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens ABC 7 NY in a new tab)
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens ABC 7 LA in a new tab)
- Trump claims Butler assassination attempt was a 'Democrat Plot' without showing evidence (opens ABC 7 Chicago in a new tab)
ABC 7 Chicago — is ABC 7 Chicago biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump blames Biden administration for handling of assassination attempt at Pennsylvania campaign rally (opens KPTV in a new tab)
Right
1Not rated
1How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
