Getting hit by a bullet makes it more dramatic and makes him more of a martyr for his rabid cult fans. If it didn’t hit him then there’s always the hint of the question - “was he the actual target?”. Which makes him less important to his fans.

FBI officially stated that it was a bullet, not shrapnel, after expressing initial uncertainty plus unhealthy 78 year olds heal slowly, hence the raised eyebrows.

Probably he was legit shot at - I think it's irrational to believe it was staged with the evidence we currently have - but fascists love false-flag and staged attacks. Hitler's Reichstag Fire, Putin's Russian Appartment Bombings are two recent examples. Even Pisastratus, the 5thC BCE tyrant of Athens staged a fake attack on himself to generate sympathy and justify an armed guard which he then used to seize the acropolis.

So I can definitely see why eyebrows raise quickly when a would be tyrant is suspiciously unscathed.

You might not understand the importance of the distinction, but Trump does in his messaging.

In an interview with The New York Post in the days after the shooting, Trump said that a bullet had hit him, taking a chunk out of his ear.

"The doctor at the hospital said he never saw anything like this, he called it a miracle," he said. "I'm not supposed to be here, I'm supposed to be dead."

He's touting this as an honest to God miracle that he survived. His followers have said God personally intervened to spare Trump, which strengthens their belief that he's some sort of holy figure destined to rule. If it turns out that he was scratched by some shrapnel and not shot, that doesn't sound nearly as divine-interventiony.

Pete Souza posted on Instagram that he suspended his Twitter account himself. Apparently he was receiving a lot of hate (big surprise) and also drew fire inadvertently to the photographer of the photo

That's all fine. But also, Trump could and should just release the record of the medical visit. That would quiet a lot of this down. The outrage comes from the "oh my god I was shot with a bullet" and the "look how strong I am" vibe trump is giving off while also not releasing any real evidence aside from the footage of the day.

But I would suspect all of that to be intentional. A void of information creates a vacuum that fills with misinformation and speculation and that causes discourse which is all trump wants.

There's a frame showing both teleprompters intact after he was shot

A picture taken after the attempt showed that both teleprompters were in tact

Souza deleted his own account.

https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4798519-former-white-house-photographer-deletes-x-account/

At minimum he was struck by glass. His reaction was instantaneous with the shots and clearly he was reacting to being hit in the ear. It could have just been reacting to a close fly by at his ear, except the chances of him then being injured and bleeding from the same ear from an agent are slim to none. But however he was injured, it clearly wasn't much of an injury regardless.

It would be kind of a moot point as he WAS shot at and injured, and a bystander and the shooter were both killed. Those are the important facts here. But then Trump had to throw a fit over the FBI saying they weren't sure he'd actually been struck by a bullet or by shrapnel. He made such a stink out of it that now that he was clearly barely injured, it just makes him look silly and egotistical (go figure!) for so vehemently insisting he was hit with a bullet.

I think you overestimate the size and power of a 5.56 round. Much of the destructive force comes from speed and the area it hits - such as the chest or hips. Bones can cause it to ricochet and spin, causing cavitation and greater destruction.

They can leave a tiny entrance wound. With how thin the ear is, it's unlikely to have left an exit wound any larger than the entrance. It may have even hit the tip of the ear.

Either way, I think there would still be a visible wound unless it just nicked the tip of the ear. The bleeding may be due to blood thinners or something, considering his cardiovascular health.

In case it gets taken down completely:

There have been re-creations on YouTube with ballistics gel and pig ears showing what happens to an ear shot by an AR-15 round, I'm not going to lay judgement, just watch the video:

Ballistics gel (language):

https://youtu.be/FsvJzfXZI18#t=6m59s

Pig ears:

https://youtu.be/zfATfPIpDc4#t=4m19s

It was just grazed and he might have had it covered with makeup, prosthetic or whatever since.

The conspiracy is crazy.

Are you insane? There is no way Trump would pass up that sort of imagery.

Why wouldn't they? Because they want to sell the strong tin leader narrative. I'm surprised he took the bandage off. I'm surprised he isn't wearing a T-shirt with his little PR photo tiny-handed fist in the air. I'm sure he asks his sycophants if it looked more manly than the photo of shirtless Putin riding a stallion.

The FBI said it was a bullet.