Butler County Mayor, Staff Flooded with Messages After Failed Trump Assassination Attempt

BUTLER, Pa. ― A Butler City Clerk’s Office received a call around noon Monday, and an furious man’s voice was on the other end of the line.

“You failed, you failed,” he told a city employee. “Put a gun to your head.”

The past 72 hours have been like nothing residents and workers in this diminutive western Pennsylvania town have ever seen, after a youthful man tried to kill former President Donald Trump at a nearby campaign rally Saturday. A bullet struck Trump in the ear and three spectators were shot, one fatally. Police identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, a suburb south of Pittsburgh.

The rally, held at the Butler Farm Show grounds about 40 miles north of Pittsburgh, was technically not within city limits, but the surrounding communities and the city still cooperate — which is why the event has attracted national attention and stigma ever since.

Butler Mayor Bob Dandoy and his staff have been inundated with media requests, phone calls and emails that have ranged from expressions of support and praise for their work to outrage and threats.

” READ MORE: The Latest: Assassination attempt on Donald Trump stalls as he reveals vice presidential candidate on first day of GOP convention

President Joe Biden called Dandoy, a Democrat, Saturday night, he said, with words of sympathy and an offer to send help. His phone has not stopped ringing, he said, and his office has a list of interview requests from national reporters. He was walking around the city Monday morning with a reporter from the New York Times.

“This is not the world we live in every day,” Dandoy said.

Being mayor of a small Pennsylvania community of just 13,000 people, he said, is often quiet, with days filled with phone calls and paperwork. Sometimes he doesn’t even go into the office. It’s like being an “exalted volunteer,” he said. “It’s a full-time job, as much as you can afford.”

But after the shooting broke out Saturday, the city’s website crashed and remained down until Monday afternoon, its server unable to handle the heavy traffic.

The city’s email inbox is a “rainbow of compliments for profanity,” said an administrative assistant who asked not to be named because of security concerns. When a man called Monday morning with a threat, she said, the typist hung up, and they tried to put it out of their minds.

“I think we’re all a little shaken up and not feeling very safe,” said Mindy Gall, the city secretary. Any email that reaches the city will be forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and investigated by them.

The city of Butler, a blue-collar city built on steel, lies in the center of Butler County, a rural Republican stronghold of about 190,000 people, nearly 95 percent white, according to the county’s county records. US Census DataThe median household income is about $81,000, about 9% live below the poverty line, and 38% have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

A billboard has appeared along State Route 8 in front of a furniture store.

“I told you they were corrupt as hell,” the sign read, referring to Democrats. “Now you believe me?”

Butler City is picturesquely situated on the banks of Connoquenessing Creek. Its Main Street stretches for about a mile and is lined with charming vintage shops, pizzerias and a few coffee shops. The Butler County Prison is two blocks away.

The surrounding neighborhoods are significantly poorer than the rest of the county — census data shows about 33% of residents make less than $25,000 a year, and many have seen their community and neighbors devastated by the opioid crisis.

” READ MORE: What Thomas Matthew Crooks’ Former Colleagues and Employer Said About Trump Shooting Suspect

“There’s nothing here,” said Jason Self, who has lived in Butler for 18 years.

Self attended Saturday’s rally with his 15-year-old son and was led away with the crowd after the shooting occurred.

Self said his car is still trapped there, and he lost his keys while running away. The area is restricted as officials continue to investigate the shooting, and he said he’s not sure when he’ll be able to get it back.

He added that the city has always been known for steel production and was the birthplace of the Jeep.

“Now we will be named after the place where the assassination attempt on the president took place,” he said.

“This is going to be the talk of the town for a long time,” said Jamie Reese, 45, who manages 10 drug treatment homes in Butler. One of his clients in treatment, Ryan Mikulin, said he hopes “the national spotlight can send some resources” to mental health and jobs, for example.

The city, Reese said, has come a long way in the past five years. He notes how city employees, a mix of Republicans and Democrats, work well together and neighbors mingle despite their political differences.

Dandoy said he fears the shooting could disrupt that harmony.

He hopes the situation will tranquil down soon, that reporters and people across America will realize that Butler was not involved in the shooting — and he doesn’t define it in any clear-cut way.

“I want to be known as the home of the Jeep,” he said. “Not for that reason.”