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5 months ago
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MSNBC analyst Michael Steele was accused of pushing "conspiracy theories" on Tuesday night when he questioned if former President Trump’s ear was actually hit by a high-caliber bullet.
Trump walked away from an assassination attempt on Saturday during a Pennsylvania rally, getting grazed in the ear by a bullet that came inches from killing him. Trump sported a bandage on his ear at the Republican National Convention on Monday.
"Let’s start with last night and the Band-Aid …. It’s been three days, going on four, since this horrific event occurred. A person lost their life, two have been severely injured, and yet we’ve not received a medical report from the hospital, nor have we received a medical report from the campaign, or from the Trump organization about the extent of the damage to his ear," Steele said during MSNBC’s coverage of the RNC.
"If he was shot by a high-caliber bullet, there should probably be very little ear there," he continued. "And so, we’d like to know that. Is there cosmetic surgery involved? What is the prognosis for recovery? Were there stitches? What is the extent and nature of the damage to his ear? Was it caused by a bullet, as opposed to, as some reports … saying it was actually shards of glass from the teleprompter?"
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Steele, who served as Republican National Committee chair before emerging as an anti-Trump MSNBC pundit, said there are "a lot of questions" around it.
"And yet, there has been no response to that," said Steele, who also co-hosts a left-wing weekend MSNBC program.
Host Ari Melber responded by noting that people have called for President Biden’s medical records, so getting more information on Trump’s ear would be "appropriate."
Mediaite reported Steele "flirted with conspiracy theories" surrounding the attempted assassination. James Golden, a longtime Rush Limbaugh producer who goes by Bo Snerdley, said Steele "appears to be casting doubt on Donald Trump's injuries."
Former NBCUniversal executive Mike Sington posted the clip on X and wrote, "Steele questions lack of transparency with Trump’s injury, floats conspiracy theory."
Dispatch editor John McCormack called Steele’s comments "bizarre" because "we all saw this happen almost in real-time and have photos and videos." NewsBusters editor Nicholas Fondacaro accused Steele of pushing "debunked conspiracy theories."
MSNBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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While Trump survived the attack, one of his supporters, Corey Comperatore, was killed while protecting his family from the bullets. Two others were critically wounded.
Steele made similar remarks on social media.
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"You would think someone would inquire about Trump’s medical report if for no other reason than Trump has not provided any medical updates or information, neither has the hospital that treated him. Outside of Trump telling us he’s ‘fine,’ how severe was the wound? Did he lose part of his ear (bullets do terrible things to flesh)? How long for recovery? Will the wound require cosmetic surgery? What about reports that it may not have been a bullet which wounded him but glass from the shattered teleprompter? If I missed such reports from his campaign or the hospital please post. Thank you," Steele wrote on X.
Fox News contributor Byron York responded, "This is a former chairman of the RNC, now an MSNBC commentator. Turns out there are, apparently, conspiracy theorists who claim Trump was not shot, that he was actually hit by a shard of glass. I talked to Dr./Rep. Ronny Jackson, who has examined and treated Trump's wound. Jackson has zero doubt that it was caused by a bullet. He also noted that such wounds can bleed a lot, as Trump's did. Plus, videos show the teleprompter panels were intact after the shooting. Glass from where?"
Fox News Digital’s Taylor Penley contributed to this report.
