Well, here we go again. The FBI is once more playing hide-and-seek with the truth, this time over a shooter who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump. GOP Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona isn’t surprised, and frankly, neither should anyone else be. The bureau’s handling of the July 13 shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, raises more questions than it answers. Is anyone really shocked?
Last week, the FBI attempted to update the public on the attack that left one man dead and three others wounded, including Trump himself. During a news briefing, FBI Assistant Director Cathy Milhoan tossed out a few details, saying that shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks had been searching online for Trump’s campaign schedule and Pennsylvania events as early as September 2023. Then, from April 2024, Crooks also started searching for President Joe Biden’s events.
In the 30 days leading up to the attack, Crooks conducted over 60 searches related to both Biden and Trump. Yet, while the FBI detailed Crooks’ searches about Trump’s rally dates, stage location, and even the weather, they clammed up about what he was searching for when it came to Biden. Curious, isn’t it?
Rep. Crane called out this glaring omission, telling reporters at a Phoenix news conference, “I’m not surprised at all. This is exactly the kind of lack of transparency we’ve come to expect from them.” According to Crane, the FBI’s selective disclosure only fuels suspicion. The bureau had no trouble telling the public that Crooks was Googling every little detail about Trump. Yet, when it came to Biden, suddenly, they had nothing specific to share.
Crane pointed out the obvious double standard: “They didn’t say what Crooks was looking up about President Biden, but they made sure to let us know every detail he searched about Trump—when the rally was, where the stage would be, even what the weather would be like.” The congressman argued that for all we know, Crooks could have been looking up Biden’s policy stances on health care or something mundane, but the FBI left that part out. Convenient, right?
Crane, a former Navy SEAL, emphasized that Crooks’ searches for Trump read like someone planning an assassination. Yet, the FBI left the door wide open on why Crooks would search for Biden’s events. Given this selective silence, it’s no wonder people don’t trust them. Crane mentioned that he and other members of Congress are conducting their own investigations, stating, “The people I represent don’t believe the federal government will get to the bottom of it. They’ve seen the FBI’s political bias firsthand.”
Crane pointed to the FBI’s track record, like their handling of the Jan. 6 investigation, the targeting of parents at school board meetings, and the infamous Hunter Biden laptop debacle. Is it any wonder that trust in the bureau is so low? “The people I represent don’t trust the FBI,” Crane stressed.
Determined to find answers, Crane and his colleagues are stepping up, even without subpoena power. “We’re going to think outside the box and get as many answers as possible,” he vowed. He hopes that their efforts will encourage whistleblowers to come forward.
Crane, along with other GOP members, even traveled to Butler, Pennsylvania, right after the assassination attempt to evaluate the situation. He noted significant security failures, like a water tower that wasn’t used by the Secret Service, which could have provided a full view of the area, including the rooftop where Crooks carried out the attack.
At the end of the day, Crane’s criticisms of the FBI’s selective transparency are becoming a chorus heard across the country. As long as the FBI keeps playing these games, don’t expect public trust to improve. The American people deserve the truth—the full truth—not the FBI’s edited version.
