Topline
Former President Donald Trump alleged Monday the suspected assassination attempt against him a day earlier was the direct result of “the rhetoric of Biden and Harris,” as Republicans have seized on the incident to flip the script on Democrats who have blamed Trump for political violence.
Palm Beach County Sheriff personnel block a road near the Trump International Golf Club after an … [+]
Key Facts
Trump alleged in an interview with Fox News Digital the suspected shooter, Ryan Wesley Routh, “believed the rhetoric of Biden and Harris, and he acted on it,” pointing to Biden and Harris’ comments casting Trump as a “threat to democracy,” a phrase frequently used by Democrats in referencing Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots and his attempts to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election.
“Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at,” Trump said a day after the Secret Service fired shots at a gunman authorities said appeared to be prepared to shoot Trump as he played a round at his Palm Beach course Sunday.
The suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, has a long criminal history and has openly criticized Trump, who he said he voted for in 2016, writing in a self-published book he co-authored that Trump’s policies in the Middle East aided Russia in its war on Ukraine, calling Trump an “idiot,” a “buffoon,” and a “fool.”
The FBI is investigating the incident as an assassination attempt, but it has not disclosed a motive.
“You are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment,” Routh, 58 and a recent resident of Hawaii, wrote in his book, referring to his 2016 vote.
Both Biden and Harris have condemned the alleged assassination attempt and said they are grateful Trump wasn’t harmed.
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Crucial Quote
“The Rhetoric, Lies, as exemplified by the false statements made by Comrade Kamala Harris during the rigged and highly partisan ABC Debate, and all of the ridiculous lawsuits specifically designed to inflict damage on Joe’s, then Kamala’s, Political Opponent, ME, has taken politics in our Country to a whole new level of Hatred, Abuse, and Distrust,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday. He didn’t mention the alleged assassination attempt, but pivoted to a rant about immigration. “Allowing millions of people, from places unknown, to INVADE and take over our Country, is an unpardonable sin,” Trump wrote, repeating his oft-repeated, baseless claim that illegal immigrants are “terrorists, criminals and mentally insane.”
Contra
Biden on Monday said the Secret Service “needs more help” as a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers called for more protection for Trump in particular. Former presidents have less protection than sitting presidents.
Tangent
Routh was charged Monday with two federal firearm offenses, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Key Background
Secret Service agents spotted a rifle poking through the brush lining the fairway of Trump’s Palm Beach golf course about 400 yards away from the former president Sunday, authorities said. Agents opened fire and whisked Trump away in an armored vehicle, and the suspect fled the scene in his own vehicle, leaving behind an AK-47-style rifle, two backpacks and a GoPro camera. Authorities recorded Routh’s license plate as he drove away and arrested him a short time later, police said. Authorities are investigating the incident as an attempted assassination, what would be the second in a little more than two months. In July, a gunman shot Trump in the ear, killed a bystander and injured two others at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Further Reading
Suspect In Trump Attempted Assassination Charged With 2 Gun Counts In Federal Court (Forbes)
Trump Assassination Attempt: Everything We Know About The Arrested Suspect (Forbes)
