- Brick Suit man Blake Marnell had a front row seat at Saturday’s rally
- That meant he was only about 30 feet away from a blood-stained Trump
- READ MORE: Follow DailyMail.com’s live blog for more details on the shooting
Blake Marnell wore his usual brick suit and sat in his usual spot in the center of the front row Saturday night as he heard Donald Trump speak.
That meant he was less than 10 yards from the former president when he heard what he thought were fireworks from the back of the crowd.
His eyewitness account, given exclusively to DailyMail.com, reveals the fear, anger and ultimately relief that swept through the crowd in Pennsylvania as a gunman attempted to assassinate the 45th president of the United States and the Front returned to power the following year.
“I instinctively looked to my left,” he said, searching for the source of the sound. “The next time I turned to look at the president, he was being tackled to the ground by Secret Service agents.”
As he watched officers use their bodies to protect Trump on the ground, he heard more shots aimed at the shooter.
He crouched to shield himself from the crossfire. Around him, others threw themselves to the ground. He could hear some of the crowd beginning to pray for the former president.
From his vantage point he could hear the officers organizing themselves.
“They weren’t calling for medical help. They were getting ready to move him,” he said. “That made me more optimistic.”
As he watched, Trump stood up. He could see blood dripping from a spot just above his right ear.
“He stood on the corner of the stage and raised his fist in the air and shook it a few times,” Marnell said, his voice shaking with adrenaline. “It was a very defiant gesture. And when I saw that, I really had hope that he was going to be OK.”
Marnell is best known as the ‘Brick Suit Guy’ because of his outfit that is a copy of Trump’s wall.
He is a regular at the “Front Row Joes,” as they call themselves, and travels the country to attend events. He estimates he has been to about 40 rallies and plans to be in Milwaukee this week for the Republican National Convention, where he will be a delegate from California.
He said it was hard to understand why this wouldn’t make Trump stronger.
“You can imagine that at a time like this he doesn’t get any sympathy,” he said.
Blake Marnell is a regular at Trump rallies in his brick suit. He was in the front row on Saturday and posted this photo hours before Trump took the stage
A Secret Service agent and members of the crowd take cover as gunshots are heard
Marnell described the deep relief he felt when he saw Trump stand up and greet his supporters in the crowd with clenched fists
He wouldn’t let that stop him, he said, just days before he was set to accept his party’s nomination in Milwaukee on Thursday.
Things will never be the same, he said, describing how he saw emergency workers rush to treat multiple victims in the stands on either side of Trump’s podium.
“We may not see a rally like this in the future,” he said. “There will be rallies, but they will be tightly controlled, perhaps even more tightly controlled indoors, and more thoroughly screened.”
Video shows the moment the drama unfolded, with a gunshot heard and Trump raising his hand to his face before crouching down.
Secret Service agents come from all sides to protect him.
Screams can be heard everywhere from the crowd.