Joe Rogan's questions about the circumstances surrounding the assassination attempt on Donald Trump have been labeled a "conspiracy" by one of his recent podcast guests.
Minutes into Trump's speech at a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, a gunman opened fire, striking the former president in his right ear. Trump was surrounded by Secret Service agents and led from the stage after defiantly raising his hand in a clenched fist.
One rally attendee was killed, and two others were critically injured, according to the Secret Service. Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was identified as the gunman, fired his weapon from the roof of a building less than 200 yards from the podium where Trump was speaking to supporters. Crooks, 20, was fatally shot by the Secret Service at the scene.
Shortly after the shooting, witness Greg Smith told the BBC that he spotted a man with a rifle crawling on a rooftop near the rally venue several minutes before shots were fired. Smith described a scene of chaos and apparent lack of coordination among security personnel as he attempted to warn them of imminent danger.
"We're pointing at him. The police are down there running around on the ground. We're, like, 'Hey, man, there's a guy on the roof with a rifle,'... and the police did not know what was going on," Smith said.
Taking up on this, Rogan said in a The Joe Rogan Experience podcast conversation with comedian Sam Morril that, when it comes to the shooter, "the more you read about it, the more you're, like, 'What is going on?'"
"They knew that there was a suspicious person 10 minutes before Trump went on stage; they still let him go on stage. They saw him on the f****** roof and they didn't engage. They saw him on the roof with a rifle," Rogan added. "They wouldn't put Secret Service agents on the roof because they said there was a slope to the roof, and it would be dangerous."
"It's more dangerous if the ex-president gets shot, which he did," The Joe Rogan Experience guest Morril said.
"Dude, it's so crazy," Rogan added, "and the fact that they had such poor security guarding him. Like, they did such a terrible job."
Newsweek has contacted Secret Service representatives via email for comment.
Discussing government agencies, the former Fear Factor host continued: "I'm not accusing anybody of anything—just want to be real clear—but they have organized assassinations before. And when they organize assassinations, it looks just like that. And when they organize assassinations, one of the things they like to do is have some f****** loser kill the president and then they kill the f****** loser, and that's a wrap. This kid kind of, like, stops all the leads."
Rogan later said that the shooter "was walking around the whole perimeter of the area with a range finder, which is instantaneously... If you're Secret Service, you see someone with a range finder walking 150 yards from where the president is, you tackle that f****** guy. You don't let that guy get on a ladder."
The broadcaster added that "if I was some shadowy intelligence agency that did these, you know, undercover operations that are a little sketchy, I'd find kids like [the shooter]. That's your moneymaker. That's how you do it.
"If you've got a plan and you want to do something, you get some guy that's basically got nothing going on in life and then you know you mentor him, become friends with him," Rogan said. "Maybe that guy's dad is an alcoholic who beats [him]. You know, maybe his mom is a f****** junkie. Who knows? Maybe his life is terrible, and you can provide mentorship and you can provide, you know, just camaraderie.
"Something [to make the potential shooter say], 'Wow, I wish I was a secret agent.' And then you tell this guy, you tell this kid, 'Hey, you could help America. We can work you into the program. You could be one of us.'"
"So now you are saying conspiracy?" Morril asked, prompting Rogan to bring up the circumstances and continued questions surrounding the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
"Listen, conspiracies are real," Rogan said. "I mean, whatever the f*** happened in Dallas, Texas, in 1963, it's not what they tell you. That's one thing; 100 percent you're going to be sure. There is no objective journalism with no slant."
During the hearing on Monday, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle was berated by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. They demanded answers on why Trump was allowed to go up on stage, even after a potentially suspicious person was spotted by officers. Cheatle repeatedly pushed back on answering lawmakers' questions, saying that the agency's investigation into the incident is ongoing. The FBI is also conducting an independent probe of the assassination attempt.
Cheatle announced her resignation in an email sent to staff on Tuesday, The Associated Press reported. She had served in her position since August 2022.
"I take full responsibility for the security lapse. In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director," Cheatle said in the letter, according to The Associated Press.
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