The new revelations on Tuesday about Thomas Matthew Crooks and his attempted assassination of President Donald Trump, then-candidate for president, came as quite a surprise to Republican lawmakers. 

The 20-year-old fired on Trump in July 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania, during a presidential campaign speech, grazing his ear, and seen live on TV. An attendee at the rally was killed while attempting to shield his family. Crooks, who fired his shots from a nearby rooftop, was shot dead almost immediately. 

The task force released its report on Dec. 10, 2024, largely based on input from local authorities and little from the federal level.

Among the new revelations were that Crooks’ father, Matthew Crooks, had tried to prevent his son from accessing firearms in May 2024, approximately two months before the attempted assassination, and that the task force was not aware that federal authorities had interviewed Crooks’ family.