Photographer Wins Pulitzer For Chilling Picture of Trump In Butler, PA
Doug Mills of The New York Times has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography for his dramatic images taken during the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.
Among the most unforgettable images from that day is Mills’ photo showing a bullet flying past President Trump’s head—an image that has already become part of modern political history. The photos also included the moment the president, bloodied but defiant, stood up and raised his fist, shouting “Fight, fight, fight!” as Secret Service agents rushed to shield and escort him off the stage.
Speaking with Fox News shortly after the attack, Mills recounted how he was positioned close to the stage when the shooting started. “I just happened to be down, shooting with a wide-angle lens just below the president when he was speaking,” Mills said during an interview at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. “There was a huge flag waving right above his head, and I just happened to be taking pictures at the same time.”
When the shots rang out, Mills instinctively kept shooting. “Then, when I heard the pops, I guess I kept hitting on the shutter,” he recalled. “And then I saw him reach for his [ear]. He grimaced and grabbed his hand and looked. It was blood, and then he went down, and I thought, ‘Dear God, he’s been shot.’”
He later realized the impact of what he had captured while reviewing and sending images to editors. “I was like, ‘Oh, hell. I remember taking pictures of him when this happened. Let me go back and look,’” he explained. Upon reviewing the frames, an editor called him back with a stunning discovery: “She goes, ‘We actually see a bullet flying behind his head,’ and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,’” Mills said.
Mills was using a Sony a1 camera to document the rally.
Katie Robertson, media reporter for The New York Times, confirmed the win, noting, “Doug Mills of The New York Times won the breaking news photography prize for his photos capturing the attempted assassination of President Trump last year, including an image in which a bullet can be seen.”
The Times took home three additional Pulitzers for its reporting on Sudan, Afghanistan, and Baltimore, according to Fox News.
In related political news, House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed on Monday that the Republican-led House is still aiming to pass President Trump’s tax reform package by Memorial Day, May 26.
“There’s been no setback,” Johnson told reporters at the Capitol, according to Reuters. “Everybody remains in close coordination on the urgency of the hour, and we’re trying to get it done. If it’s not done before Memorial Day, it will be shortly thereafter. But our timetable is on pace.”
He acknowledged that the legislative timeline is “very ambitious,” but said that internal discussions remain productive, even as debates continue over certain aspects of the bill—especially proposed Medicaid reforms.
Rather than targeting benefits, Republicans are reportedly focusing on eliminating inefficiencies flagged by the Department of Government Efficiency.
“It’s not a setback at all,” Johnson said. “In fact, I think it’s very productive. We would rather take another week and do it exactly right than rush it and have to adjust things later.”