When a bullet struck Donald Trump’s ear during a failed assassination attempt at a Pennsylvania rally, Ivanka Trump said she felt “horrified and scared,” yet instinctively knew her father “was fine” because “it wasn’t his time.”
On July 13, chaos erupted during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a gunman opened fire, grazing Trump’s ear before Secret Service agents rushed him from the stage.
Images of the then‑candidate with blood on the side of his face spread rapidly, turning a routine political event into a moment that stunned viewers across the country.
‘Felt the bullet ripping through the skin’
In a statement posted hours later on Truth Social, Trump described the terrifying seconds when he realized he had been struck.
“I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” he wrote on July 13. “I knew immediately something was wrong — I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.”
He also acknowledged the victims of the attack, adding, “Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person who was badly injured.”
Authorities later identified the shooter as 20‑year‑old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was killed at the scene by a Secret Service counter‑sniper team.
Watched ‘almost in real time’
For Ivanka Trump, the reality of what was happening came through a television screen as she watched the shooting unfold “almost in real time” with two of her children at the Trump family golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
“There was a lot of commotion. The televisions were on, so I saw it almost immediately,” Ivanka, 44, told host Steven Bartlett on an April 9 episode of The Diary of a CEO podcast.
As the situation became clearer, her focus shifted instantly to her children.
“It was before he had stood back up that I had seen what was transpiring, and two of my children were there with me,” she said of Arabella, 15, Joseph, 12, and Theodore, 10, whom she shares with her husband Jared Kushner.
“My first reaction was to turn them away. It was incredibly difficult,” she added.
Even as the situation remained uncertain, she said she felt an unexpected sense of calm.
“Interestingly, I knew in real time that he was fine. I just knew it wasn’t his time,” she said. “I was horrified and scared and protective of my children, but I also didn’t believe the worst possible outcome had transpired. And thank God it hadn’t.”
‘Failed attempt to take his life’
The experience left her confronting the fragility of life in a deeply personal way, something she explained has influenced how she responds emotionally.
“We were so fortunate that day that this was a failed attempt to take his life, not a realized one,” she said. “But you sort of recommit to love and connection and to recognizing how short our time here on earth is — and how you have to value it.”
She added that difficult experiences can shape how people choose to move forward.
“I could look at what happened and be rightfully traumatized by the experience, and nobody could argue with that, but you have to move through it,” she said.
‘My father’s alive’
Looking back, Ivanka said she’s tried to approach the experience with perspective and appreciation.
“What does that accomplish, being negative towards the world?” she said. “I think that brings more negativity into the world.”
“And on the opposite side of that is the fact that [Trump is] with us today, that he didn’t die. That is an extraordinary blessing for me as his daughter. In life, you only have a choice in how you respond. And I choose to see the positive outcome that transpired,” she continued.
When asked about the shooter, Ivanka replied: “There’s a lot of sickness there, and I think forgiveness is a difficult thing in this regard. But my father living was a blessing.”
