This is the moment a US Secret Service agent struggles to holster her weapon after Donald Trump was shot in an assassination attempt.
Trump, 78, was left bloodied and wounded last night when a bullet pierced the 'upper part' of his right ear during a rally in Pennsylvania.
Gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, opened fire from a rooftop just 130 yards from where the former president was on stage speaking to thousands of fans in Butler at 6.15pm.
Crooks, from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, was shot dead at the scene by US Secret Service officers.
As loud bangs rang out, Trump suddenly grabbed hold of his ear before ducking to the floor as the Secret Service swarmed around him.
He then got to his feet with blood pouring down his cheek and raised his fist in the air and defiantly shouted 'fight' as he was dragged off stage while the MAGA crowd chanted 'USA'.
There appeared to be chaotic scenes as Trump was bundled into a nearby vehicle as confused-looking Secret Service agents nervously looked around.
One seemed to struggle to holster her weapon into her waistband, while another frantically moved around before touching her ear and facing the crowd as she stood in front of the vehicle.
Republicans have since claimed they made 'repeated requests for stronger protection' for Trump as questions begin to grow over the former President's security.
Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi says those claims are 'absolutely false'.
A member of the crowd was killed, while two others who were wounded are in a critical condition. All three are males, according to law enforcement officials.
Rep. Ronny Jackson later revealed his nephew was shot during the assassination attempt and a bullet had grazed his neck.
Jackson, who was Trump and President Barack Obama's White House physician, said he helped his nephew and a friend get a spot in the friends and family section close to the stage at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Rep. Mike Waltz claimed that Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had denied Trump stronger Secret Service protection.
The Florida congressman wrote on X: 'I have very reliable sources telling me there have been repeated requests for stronger secret service protection for President Trump. Denied by Secretary Mayorkas.'
Mr Guglielmi told MailOnline that 'the assertion that a member of the former President's security team requested additional security resources that the US Secret Service or the Department of Homeland Security rebuffed is absolutely false'.
'In fact, recently the US Secret Service added protective resources and capabilities to the former President's security detail,' he said.
'The former President, and the current President, are commonly subject to threats. The US Secret Service takes threats seriously, and it takes actions based on those threats as warranted.
'The US Secret Service is constantly evaluating the very dynamic threat environment and responding to it in the fulfillment of its responsibilities.
'While we can't get into specifics, the US Secret Service adds additional resources for all campaign cycles including manpower and a variety of protective technology. This addition of resources happens for all election cycles and is part of our candidate nominee operations section, also known as CNOS.'
Sources told the New York Post Trump's Secret Service protection is the fraction the size of sitting presidents.
And he does not receive counter assault and counter defence as part of his protection team, the source added.
A stunned witness, named only as Greg, told the BBC he saw the would-be assassin climb onto the top of a building outside the event, and that he was bewildered by the lack of action from agents.
He said: 'I'm thinking to myself, why is Trump still speaking, why have they not pulled him off the stage? The next thing you know, five shots ring out.'
After the gunman opened fire he saw the Secret Service 'blow his head off,' the man said.
In a post to his Truth Social network, Trump said a bullet pierced the 'upper part' of his right ear.
He received treatment at hospital before being released. Trump later posted a statement thanking the Secret Service and other law enforcement 'for their rapid response'.
He added: '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 that was badly injured,' he says in the post.
'It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead.'
He ended the post with: 'GOD BLESS AMERICA!'
'I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin,' Trump wrote. 'Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.'
US House Speaker Speaker Mike Johnson vowed that the House will conduct a full investigation.
In a post on X, the speaker said: 'The American people deserve to know the truth.
'We will have Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and other appropriate officials from DHS and the FBI appear for a hearing before our committees ASAP.'
The Secret Service has agreed to brief the House Oversight Committee about the attack.
'He (Trump) does get a very robust former protection detail that is with him all the time. But he doesn't necessarily get all of the different assets that are available. So, I think that there are some aspects of this incident that are going to be investigated,' retired Secret Service Supervisor Bobby McDonald told Reuters.
'The Secret Service will now look at what happened and how that they can again develop and continue to enhance their protective methodologies to make sure that things like this do not happen in the future.'
Former Navy SEAL Rep. Ryank Zinke, R-Mont., who has experience in setting perimeters in combat zones, said the shooter being able to access a 'nearby roof' to take aim at Trump was an 'absolute failure of security.'
And House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told DailyMail.com in a statement that he plans to hold a hearing with the Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to get to the bottom of the failures.
The House Homeland Security Committee also released a statement indicating their desire to hold a hearing with the Secret Service.
The committee's messages indicate what could be the beginning of a deluge of congressional action over the attempted assassination of the former president.
'There are many questions and Americans demand answers,' Comer said. 'I have already contacted the Secret Service for a briefing and am also calling on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to appear for a hearing.
'The Oversight Committee will send a formal invitation soon.'
And within hours Comer officially organized a hearing with U.S. Secret Service brass for Monday July 22.
The committee 'has initiated an investigation into today's assassination attempt,' he writes to Director Cheatle.
Democrat Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., also released a statement Saturday calling for an investigation.
'The security failures surrounding the attempted assassination of a presidential candidate demand an investigation,' he wrote.
'The federal government must constantly learn from security failures in order to avoid repeating them - especially when those failures have implications for the Nation.'
Zinke continued to detail the security failure in a post on X.
'I cannot think of a single time where a point of elevation so close in range would have been accessible and not already occupied by security forces.'
'There will be a thorough investigation,' Zinke continued. 'The American people and our leadership deserve better.'
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., similarly demanded that the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hold a hearing on the attempt on Trump's life by August 1, according to a Saturday night statement.
President Biden said in a statement that American 'must unite as one nation' in response to the horrific scenes.
'I have been briefed on the shooting at Donald Trump's rally in Pennsylvania. I'm grateful to hear that he's safe and doing well,' the White House said in a statement.
'I'm praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information.'
In a press conference later in the evening, Biden described the incident as 'sick', and said there is 'no place in America for this kind of violence.'
'I hope I get to speak to him tonight,' Biden said of his 2024 opponent.
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