Trump Alleges Butler Plot

What happened

The facts the coverage agrees on, drawn from reporting across the political spectrum. Where the sides dispute something, it's attributed.

Trump alleged on Truth Social that the Butler assassination attempt was a “Democrat Plot”; FBI officials Kash Patel and Dan Bongino said investigators found no evidence Thomas Matthew Crooks was directed by anyone else. Trump accused Biden’s FBI and Christopher Wray of mishandling the case. Crooks fired from a rooftop, grazed Trump’s ear, killed Corey Comperatore, wounded two attendees, and was killed. New FBI records went to Chuck Grassley. Patel said agents reviewed about 27 Crooks devices. Records mention the “Bob Dole” alias, anonymous cremation payment, rally registration, rifle training, and nonviolent descriptions.

Both sides

How left-leaning and right-leaning outlets told this story, in their own coverage. Outlet names link to the article we drew from.

From the left

Left-leaning accounts treated Trump’s claim as a baseless conspiracy, focusing on its clash with investigators rather than on the new file details. The Daily Beast called the allegation a “wild new conspiracy” and cast it as unsupported by proof. The Daily Beast also stressed that Kash Patel and Dan Bongino were Trump appointees, making their contrary finding central to the story. It framed Trump’s FBI cover-up charge as unproven and against repeated investigator denials.

From the right

Right-leaning accounts led with unresolved questions in the records, while also airing Trump’s accusation and the current FBI finding. Breitbart, citing the New York Post, lingered on the “Bob Dole” alias tied to weapons-related purchases. The Daily Wire highlighted the anonymous donor who paid for Crooks’ cremation as a suspicious detail. The New York Post cited Trump’s charge against Biden’s FBI and Wray, while the Washington Examiner cited Patel saying agents found “no evidence” of outside communication.

Coverage•18 articles — 1 left, 3 center, 14 right