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US President Donald Trump displayed a painting depicting the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, during a closed-door multilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders. Trump remarked, “that was not a great day,” as he showed the artwork, which captures the July 13, 2024, attack in which he narrowly escaped injury. Michael Thomas Crooks, 20, opened fire with an AR-15-style rifle from the roof of a nearby building while Donald Trump was speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed Trump’s ear, leaving him wounded, while attendee Corey Comperatore was killed.The image of Trump raising his fist moments after the Butler attack became a defining political symbol, accelerating support for his candidacy and playing a role in Joe Biden’s decision to exit the race. A painting of the scene now hangs in a prominent spot on the White House State Floor, near the staircase to the presidential residenceBy tradition, portraits of the most recent US presidents are displayed in the most prominent location at the White House, the entrance of the executive mansion, where they are visible to guests during official events, as per CNN.Following their talks on Monday, Trump and Zelenskyy joined European leaders for a meeting at the White House, where they posed together for a group photo when Trump pointed out the portrait depicting his assassination attempt. The meeting involved Zelenskyy, British prime minister Keir Starmer, Finnish president Alexander Stubb, German chancellor Friedrich Merz, Nato secretary general Mark Ruttle, French president Emmanuel Macron, and Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni. The multilateral meeting followed Trump’s recent summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which did not include Zelenskyy.
