Trump shooting victim’s final words before he was shot and killed heroically shielding his family from gunman – as distraught wife reveals why she won’t take Biden’s phone call
The final words of a father of two who was gunned down at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania have been released. His wife says she won’t take a phone call from President Joe Biden because the victim was a “devout Republican.”
Corey Comperatore, 50, was killed Saturday night as he tried to protect his wife and daughter after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire.
“He’s my hero,” said his wife Helen Comperatore, told the New York Post. “He just said, ‘Lie down!’ That was the last thing he said.”
President Biden has since attempted to express his condolences to the Comperatore family, but Helen said she did not want to hear from him.
“I don’t talk to Biden,” she said. “I didn’t want to talk to him. My husband was a committed Republican and he wouldn’t have wanted me to talk to him,” she explained.
Corey Comperatore (pictured right) was killed while trying to protect his wife (left) and daughter after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire
Corey Comperatore was the chief of the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Department for about three years, but was also a life member, meaning he served for more than 20 years
Helen added that she has no “ill will” towards the president.
“I’m not one of those people who get involved in politics,” she told the Post.
‘I support Trump, I vote for him, but I have no bad intentions towards Biden.
“He didn’t do anything to my husband, some despicable 20 year old boy did.”
Helen said she and her husband, who were in love in high school, were about to celebrate their 29th wedding anniversary when they went to the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, to support the former president.
“Me and the kids were all there as a family,” she said. “He was just excited. It was going to be a fun day with the family.”
Comperatore enthusiastically shared his plans on X.
Trump supporters are seen in the stands covered in blood after guns were fired at Republican candidate Donald Trump during the campaign event
Trump was also shot in his right ear by Crooks, who opened fire with an AR-style rifle from a rooftop 450 feet from the MAGA event
But the meeting ended in tragedy when Crooks opened fire from a rooftop just 400 feet from where Trump was standing.
While trying to protect his wife and daughter, Comperatore, a former volunteer firefighter, was shot in the head.
An emergency room doctor at Donald Trump’s rally recounted how he performed CPR on Comperatore after he was hit by a bullet meant for the former president.
“I heard the shots. I thought it was fireworks. Someone was yelling ‘he’s shot, he’s shot,'” said the man, whose blood was spattered across his white USA T-shirt. “So I walked over. I said I’m an emergency physician. Let me help you.”
“The man turned around and was pinned between the benches. He was shot in the head here,” he told CBS News.
“So I got him together, so I have people there that are really helpful. I also did CPR and chest compressions.”
But the 50-year-old was later pronounced dead.
Helen said she wants America to now remember Corey as a “very loving husband.”
“He was a simple man, but his wife and children always came first,” she said.
“I didn’t do anything here. I didn’t lift a finger. He did everything.”
Helen said she now wants America to remember Corey as a ‘very loving husband’
A online fundraising The foundation set up to help the Comperatore family after the tragedy has now raised more than $1 million.
Donald Trump’s campaign has also raised more than $4 million for the families of the three men who were killed or injured in Saturday’s assassination attempt.
At the time of writing, the number of Trump-approved GoFundMe amounted to $4,328,763 – more than four times the original goal of $1 million.
All donations will be distributed among Comperatore’s family members, as well as those of David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74, who were injured in the attack.
Trump’s team confirmed the authenticity of the GoFundMe to The Hill. The two surviving victims are reportedly in stable condition in hospitals.
“President Donald Trump has authorized this account as a venue for donations to the supporters and families injured or killed in today’s brutal and horrific assassination attempt,” reads a description on the heavily trafficked webpage.
All donations will go to these proud Americans as they grieve and recover.
“May God bless and unite our nation,” it concludes.
More than 358 people responded to show their support, while a whopping 56,500 people opened their figurative wallets.
The largest donation appears to have come from former Trump backer Steve Wynn, a billionaire and former casino operator who lobbies tirelessly for the Republican Party front-runner.
Secret Service agents rushed to subdue the former president as shots rang out
Corey was described Sunday as a “girl dad” who had just turned 50
That gift amounted to a whopping $50,000, from a man Trump handpicked in 2017 to become the finance chairman of the Republican National Committee.
“The donations that have come in from the community and from across the country have been greater than I could ever have imagined,” Helen told the Post of the fundraiser.
“It’s more than I can comprehend, but he deserves it all. He deserves everything,” she said of her late husband.
Trump was also shot in his right ear by Crooks, who opened fire with an AR-style rifle from a rooftop 400 feet from the MAGA event.
The former president grabbed his head and ducked as frightened bystanders ran outside, screaming.
He then stood up, pumped his fist and chanted “fight, fight, fight” as the Secret Service pushed him off the stage and into a procession.
The shooting is currently under investigation as authorities question how the shooter was able to position his AR-style rifle more than 100 yards away from the former president.