SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
NASA still does not know when two astronauts will be able to come home from the International Space Station. In a moment, we will speak to Scott Kelly, a retired astronaut who spent a year aboard the space station about how to pass time up there. And we will also get into why he thinks his twin brother, Senator Mark Kelly, would make a good VP pick.
But first, federal authorities continue to investigate the gunman who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this month. While the motive for the attack is still unknown, a clearer picture is starting to emerge about the 20-year-old man who carried out the attack. NPR's Bobby Allyn has spent the last week talking to residents in the shooter's hometown in Western Pennsylvania and joins us now. Hey, Bobby.
BOBBY ALLYN, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.
DETROW: So, you've been in Bethel Park, which is right outside Pittsburgh, trying to learn more about the gunman. What did you find out?
ALLYN: Yeah, I have been. And I talked to about a dozen neighbors of the shooter, Thomas Crooks. And, you know, they all said he was this really reserved guy. He didn't interact much with his neighbors. They'd see him, you know, coming in and out of his small, brick house where he lived with his mom and dad or walking to his job at a nearby nursing home. And these neighbors described him as kind of a nerdy, shy guy who just, you know, didn't draw much attention to himself. And I got a really similar description from Zac Herring. He attended three community college courses in engineering with Crooks. And he told me Crooks was this introvert - right? - and often the brightest one in the class. Crooks would always finish his assignments first and got straight A's.
ZAC HERRING: When he knew stuff, like, he would almost be, like, apprehensive about giving answer, just be really quick. You know, it's like he knew the answer, he'd give it quick, but he didn't want, like, people to marvel at how smart he was.
ALLYN: Yeah. And Herring also said that even the clothes Crooks wore, Scott, were kind of nondescript, right? And he very rarely showed any emotion.
DETROW: I mean, this is interesting. Let's talk about his political beliefs because given the nature of the attack, there was just an immediate rush to try and figure that out, right? Couple of weeks later, have we learned anything more, any clearer picture on that front?
ALLYN: We really haven't. Now, he was a registered Republican, but he also gave a $15 donation to a progressive group years ago. And so these data points alone don't tell us much. He was barely on social media, so there are very few clues online. Now, the day he attempted to assassinate former President Trump, he was wearing a T-shirt of this YouTube gun community called Demolition Ranch. And I watched a bunch of their videos, and they're just these gun enthusiasts. They're kind of expressly nonpolitical. When I talked to Crooks' classmate, he told me that Crooks just never brought up politics. When other people were chatting about it in class, Crooks never chimed in. So yeah, his politics and world view are just this really big question mark.
DETROW: We heard the other day from FBI Director Christopher Wray testifying before Congress. What did he say during that testimony about Crooks?
ALLYN: Yeah, Wray said Crooks had Googled, quote, "how far away was Oswald from Kennedy?" - a reference to, of course, the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy. Wray said Crooks visited the rally site several times, including just before Trump spoke. Crooks flew a drone over the site for 11 minutes, so he was pretty methodical in these plans. The rifle Crooks used in the shooting was bought from his father who had 14 legally purchased guns in their house. While we don't know much about Crooks' mental state, investigators said that, you know, his Google history included a search for major depressive disorders. So Scott, we at least know he was somewhat curious about mental health challenges.
DETROW: So there's just a lot of missing pieces here with him in particular. But more broadly, let's talk about Bethel Park. This had to be rattling for people who live there. What have you found from talking to people?
ALLYN: Yeah, people were quite unsettled. The neighbors I spoke to were very shaken up, but they're also just, you know, a very resilient community. I think they're ready to move on. Bethel Park is this working-class Pittsburgh suburb of about 30,000 people, you know, not exactly a place used to the international spotlight. I talked to one of them, Chesleah Kribs. She lives on the same street as Crooks' family, and she said the incident should not put a dent in the community's fabric long term.
CHESLEAH KRIBS: What we've been known for is just loving our neighbors and making sure that everyone is known that they're welcome and - regardless of political standpoint or, you know, anything else. We all are still just Bethel Park, and we have to kind of stay together.
ALLYN: Now, I'll note here, Scott, that Trump has said on social media site Truth Social that he's planning another rally in Butler, the site of the shooting. And he said it will be a, quote, "big and beautiful rally."
DETROW: All right, Bobby, thanks so much.
ALLYN: Thanks, Scott.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
