Back in the sweltering heat of July 2024, Thomas Matthew Crooks perched on a rooftop in Butler, Pennsylvania, his AR-15-style rifle spitting rounds at former President Donald Trump, grazing his ear in a near-miss that sent shockwaves through the nation. The official story snapped into place like a well-oiled bolt carrier: lone wolf shooter, no accomplices, no foreign ties, investigation over. But as Joe Kent and Tucker Carlson are now forcefully exposing, a glaring hole persists in that narrative—where’s the surveillance video from the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club gun range, where Crooks reportedly practiced over 40 times in the year leading up to the attempt? This isn’t some footnote; it’s a potential bombshell. Federal investigators seized the range’s footage, yet months later, no public release, no clear explanation. Kent, a Green Beret veteran and 2A champion running for Congress, joined Carlson to demand transparency, pointing out how Crooks’ membership lapsed suspiciously just before the rally, and how range staff flagged his odd behavior—yet nothing escalated.
Digging deeper, this missing video isn’t just sloppy police work; it’s a red flag for systemic failures that should have every 2A advocate on high alert. Crooks wasn’t some amateur—he was a trained marksman honing skills on public ranges, blending into the law-abiding crowd of responsible gun owners. If that footage captured accomplices, encrypted comms, or even just his meticulous planning, its suppression fuels conspiracy whispers and erodes trust in institutions already hostile to our rights. Remember, the FBI’s quick lone wolf label mirrors past rush-jobs like the Vegas shooter, where key evidence vanished. For the 2A community, the implications are stark: if everyday ranges become battlegrounds for scrutiny, with footage weaponized against us, expect more closures, more regulations, and chilled participation. Kent and Carlson aren’t just asking where’s the tape?—they’re rallying us to fight for accountability before this morphs into pretext for broader surveillance on ranges nationwide.
The clock’s ticking as we head into 2025—demand the video’s release now, or risk a precedent where missing evidence becomes the new normal for dismissing threats to our Republic. Joe Kent’s platform and Tucker’s megaphone are amplifying this for a reason: transparency protects the innocent shooter from smears and the guilty plot from cover-ups. 2A patriots, share this, tag your reps, and hold the line—because if they can bury Crooks’ range tape, what’s next for your local club?
