‘It Wasn’t His Time’: Ivanka Trump Recalls Horrifying Assassination Attempt On Donald Trump

Ivanka Trump relived the terrifying moment she saw the July 2024 assassination attempt on her father on TV “almost immediately” after it happened.

President Donald Trump’s daughter recalled the July 13, 2024 attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in an emotional interview Thursday with Steven Bartlett on “The Diary of a CEO,” noting that her life has changed “radically.” Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, tried to kill the then-presidential candidate by firing multiple shots into a crowd of Trump supporters. Ivanka noted that the U.S. faces “troubling times” and spoke about the U.S. Secret Service.

“The fact that there is a correlation between service and violence is terrible in and of itself, but that’s the world we live in so I have to acknowledge that reality and defend my family as best I can and make sure they’re protected. And I’m very fortunate that the Secret Service are the best in the world at doing that,” Ivanka continued.

Like so many who vividly remember the events that transpired that day, Ivanka played back the scene.

“I was in Bedminster, New Jersey, and there was a lot of commotion and the televisions were on, so I saw it almost immediately,” she told Bartlett.

“It was almost real-time, it was before he had stood back up that I had seen what was transpiring — and two of my children were there, so my first reaction was to turn them away.”

Ivanka fought back the tears before continuing. “It was incredibly difficult,” she said.

“Interestingly,  I knew real-time in that moment that he was fine. I just knew that it wasn’t his time.”

“So I was horrified, and I was scared and I was protective of my children, but I also — I didn’t believe the worst possible outcome had transpired, thank God — and thank God it hadn’t.”

Ivanka said she saw her father later that night, when he returned from the hospital, and there was a notable shift in her perspective.

“I just feel incredibly lucky that he was protected on that day. You can’t take things for granted in life,” she said. “And we were so fortunate that day that this was a failed attempt to take his life, not a realized one.”

TOPSHOT – Republican candidate Donald Trump is seen with blood on his face surrounded by secret service agents as he is taken off the stage at a campaign event at Butler Farm Show Inc. in Butler, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2024. Donald Trump was hit in the ear in an apparent assassination attempt by a gunman at a campaign rally on Saturday, in a chaotic and shocking incident that will fuel fears of instability ahead of the 2024 US presidential election.
The 78-year-old former president was rushed off stage with blood smeared across his face after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, while the gunman and a bystander were killed and two spectators critically injured. (Photo by Rebecca DROKE / AFP via Getty Images)

The attempt on her father’s life made her appreciate the value of each day. “You recommit to love and connection and to a recognition of how short our time here on earth is,” Ivanka said.

Bartlett questioned Ivanka, asking if she had a negative view of society after the harsh realization that some members of the public genuinely wish death upon her father.

“I don’t allow it to — what does that accomplish, being negative towards the world?” she replied. “I think that brings more negativity to the world.”

TOPSHOT – Ivanka Trump listens while her father US President Donald Trump speaks via video with NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station from the Oval Office of the White House April 24, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Bartlett pressed Ivanka about how she felt about the shooter, to which she replied, “There’s a lot of sickness there, and I think that forgiveness is a difficult thing in this regard, but I think you have to.” (RELATED: Ivanka Trump Takes Pride In Political Accomplishments But Does Not Regret Stepping Away)

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 20: Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and their son Joseph depart from the East Front of the United States Capitol after the Inauguration of President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States. (Photo by Chris Kleponis – Pool/Getty Images)

Choosing to focus on her father’s survival, she said, “His living was a blessing, so I could look at what happened and be rightfully traumatized by the experience, and nobody could really argue with that, but you have to move through it. A on the opposite side of that is the fact that he’s with us today, that he didn’t die — that my father is alive and that is an extraordinary blessing for me as his daughter.”

“In life you have a choice only in how you respond — and I chose to see the positive outcome that transpired,” Ivanka said.

Six secret service agents were suspended in connection with the attempt on Trump’s life in July 2025. That month, the president told Fox News he was “satisfied” with the briefing he was given over the security lapses that took place while saying “there were mistakes made.”