CNN host Abby Phillip forced to correct the record after Touré’s controversial remarks about the Butler rally assassination attempt
A CNN panel descended into chaos Thursday night after liberal commentator Touré cast doubt on one of the most widely documented moments of the 2024 election: the assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
During a segment on NewsNight about transparency surrounding Trump’s current health, Touré suggested that the former president may not have actually been shot in the ear during the Butler, Pennsylvania rally last July — a comment that sparked immediate outrage from other panelists.
“He supposedly got shot in the ear. We never heard from his doctors about that,” Touré said.
The remark prompted a sharp rebuke from CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings, who waved his hands and turned to host Abby Phillip.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Uh-uh! Did you say supposedly? Abby, Abby,” Jennings said, visibly stunned.
The moment threw the panel into verbal disarray. Touré raised his voice, repeatedly asking, “When did we hear from his doctors?” as Phillip attempted to regain control.
“Hold on. If you all stop screaming at the table, maybe I can actually respond,” Phillip said, trying to cool the tensions.
A Well-Documented Incident
The July 13, 2024 rally shooting was captured on live broadcast, and widely covered. A bullet grazed Trump’s right ear, and he was rushed off stage with blood visible. The would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, was shot and killed by Secret Service agents moments later.
In the days that followed, Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), a former White House physician and longtime Trump ally, said there was “absolutely no evidence” that Trump was struck by anything other than a bullet.
Still, Touré insisted that the public hadn’t been adequately briefed by Trump’s doctors and pushed the question again.
“Can we hear from the doctors? Wouldn’t we always hear from doctors when a president gets shot?” he asked.
Phillip responded by pointing out, “Touré, he was shot in the ear,” and then passed the question to Jennings.
“All I know is, I went to the Republican National Convention, and he had a bandage on his ear,” Jennings said.
Touré repeatedly interrupted, chanting, “That would be no, that would be no,” as the crosstalk intensified. Fellow panelist and conservative commentator Ben Ferguson also tried to jump in before Phillip had to pause the conversation once again.
Health Questions Resurface
The panel had initially been discussing a new White House statement on Trump’s health after recent public appearances showed swelling in his ankles and discoloration in his hands. Former Harris campaign spokesperson Adrienne Elrod had praised the Biden administration for being transparent about those concerns — but raised doubts about how much Trump’s team reveals.
Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, said during a Thursday press conference that Trump had undergone “comprehensive examination, including diagnostic vascular studies,” and was found to have “chronic venous insufficiency,” a common and non-life-threatening condition in older adults.
Despite the intended topic, it was Touré’s controversial challenge to a documented assassination attempt — one that many Americans witnessed live — that hijacked the discussion and sparked a firestorm online and on set.
