It may be too soon to report definitively on what authorities are investigating as an assassination attempt on President Trump while he spoke at a rally in Pennsylvania. It’s not too soon to say that all Americans share a sense of horror at what they saw on live broadcasts and will be praying for the 45th president and his family. We would like to think that this will emerge as a sobering and unifying moment for all Americans of whatever party.

The events unfolded at a Trump rally at Butler, Pennsylvania. The video captures him dilating on immigration when suddenly he reaches with his right hand up to his ear, where, he later disclosed, he was pierced by a bullet. As what sounds like gun fire erupts … pop, pop, pop … and the president goes down, Secret Service agents scramble without the slightest hesitation to get between Trump and whoever might be targeting him.

The gunman, according to local reports quoted by the Associated Press and cited by our Matt Rice, killed at least one rally attendee before the gunman was shot dead by law enforcement. Several officers wearing body armor and carrying rifles covered the former president and told the protective detail that the shooter was down. Trump then stood up surrounded by security agents and was carried or led off the stage.

Trump raised his fist for the crowd to see and seemed to be mouthing the word “fight.” It was in that melee that the cameras captured what appears to be blood on Trump’s face and right ear. Shortly after Trump left the rally, his spokesman, Steven Cheung, said he was “fine” and headed to a medical evaluation nearby. He expressed Trump’s gratitude to “law enforcement and first responders for their quick action.”

There is no doubt that the sense of horror in Pennsylvania is widely shared. President Biden issued a formal statement saying  that he had been briefed and is “grateful to hear” that Trump is  “safe and doing well.” He added that he was “praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information.” He said there’s “no place for this kind of violence in America” and called on the nation to “condemn it.”

President Obama took to X to write that “we should all be relieved that former President Trump wasn’t seriously hurt, and use this moment to recommit ourselves to civility and respect in our politics.” President Clinton said on X that he and Hillary are “thankful that President Trump is safe.” Even Senator Schumer put out a statement saying he is “horrified by what happened” and “relieved” that the 45th president is safe.

Democrats aren’t the only ones praying for Trump — Republicans across the country are doing so, too. The especial newsworthiness of the Democratic statements arises from the contrast with one of the most acrimonious elections in history. Democrats who have spent the campaign trying to convince voters that Trump would, if elected, destroy democracy in America are suddenly beseeching God for his recovery. 

The shooting erupted less than 48 hours before Trump is due at Milwaukee to kick off the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin, where he will be formally nominated as the GOP’s candidate for president on Thursday. It turns out that Milwaukee is where a would-be assassin shot another out-of-power president seeking to make a comeback — Theodore Roosevelt. It made TR the stuff of legend.

The bullet fired against Roosevelt, our Dean Karayanis reminds us, was stopped by the text of his speech and a case for his specs that were in his breast pocket. That led TR to exclaim his famous boast that it would take more than a bullet to stop a bull moose. President Taft and Woodrow Wilson briefly suspended their campaigns, as President Biden has indicated he will do in the wake of the events in Butler. 

By our lights the moment calls for a more humble approach on both sides. If the Democrats can wish the 45th president well we’d like to think that Trump can credit their own dreams and dignity. Trump displayed courage and gumption today, as did TR in Milwaukee. A lot can happen, though. The Bull Moose, after all and under different circumstances, lost in 1912. So we join all the prayers for Trump to make a quick return.