Assassination attempt | Trump targeted again

(New York) The vigilance of a Secret Service agent probably saved Donald Trump’s life on Sunday in West Palm Beach, where the former president was practicing his favorite sport on a golf course bearing his name.

At around 1:30 p.m., the officer, who was one hole ahead of the golfer and his companions, saw the barrel of a rifle through the wire mesh of a fence along the course. He immediately opened fire on the person holding the weapon, forcing him to flee.

Police found in the bushes an AK-47 with a scope, two backpacks and a GoPro camera with which the suspect, identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, apparently wanted to film the assassination of Donald Trump.

“The officer did a fantastic job,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said at a late afternoon news conference.

“We do not know at this time whether the individual was able to shoot our agents,” said Rafael Barros, head of the Secret Service office in Miami.

Shortly after the press conference, the FBI confirmed that it was “investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump.” It would be the second such attack targeting the Republican presidential candidate in just over two months. Trump narrowly survived the first, which occurred on July 13 during a speech in Butler, Pennsylvania. He was injured in the ear.

Butler’s shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was shot dead, leaving no apparent clues as to his motives.

In contrast, the suspect in the alleged West Palm Beach assassination attempt was arrested in Martin County, which borders Palm Beach. A witness who was near Donald Trump’s golf club had the presence of mind to take a photo of the license plate of the black SUV in which the man fled.

Changing political views

Based in Hawaii since 2018, Ryan Wesley Routh worked in the construction industry in North Carolina, a state where he had several run-ins with the law. According to his social media posts, he is concerned about the fate of Ukraine to the point of announcing in March 2022 that he was ready to fight and die for this country in the conflict with Russia.

An article published a year later by the New York Times says he tried to recruit Afghan veterans of the war against the Taliban to fight in Ukraine.

His political preferences reflect a fickle, even volatile, mindset. In 2020, he endorsed former Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard for president, saying he was disappointed with the presidency of Donald Trump, the candidate he said he voted for in 2016.

In 2022, he seemed to be on the same page as Joe Biden. “Democracy is at stake and we can’t lose,” he wrote in a tweet that mirrored the Democratic president’s thinking.

In 2024, he expressed support for a presidential ticket consisting of Republican candidates Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy. “Break the norms and give us an option,” he wrote in a message on X addressed to the former South Carolina governor.

A few hundred meters from Trump

As the gunshots rang out in West Palm Beach, Donald Trump was walking the grass of 5^e hole of his golf course with Steve Witkoff, a long-time friend, and members of his staff.

The suspect was then standing 300 to 500 yards away from him, according to the Palm Beach County sheriff.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers have again expressed concerns about the protection provided by the Secret Service.

“We have requested a briefing with the United States Secret Service on what happened and how the security services responded,” said Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly and fellow Colorado Democrat Jason Crow, who are leading a task force investigating the Butler assassination attempt.

“We are pleased that the former president was not injured, but we remain deeply concerned by political violence and condemn it in all its forms,” ​​they added in a joint statement.

In a “good mood” despite everything

The former president returned to Mar-a-Lago, the private club where he has established his residence in Florida, late in the afternoon. Earlier, he had sought to be both reassuring and unwavering in an email to members of his list of potential donors.

“There have been shots fired in my vicinity, but before the rumor gets out of hand, I want to tell you this: I AM SAFE AND HEALTHY!” he said. “Nothing will slow me down. I will never surrender!”

He sent another email asking for funds during the evening.

“My determination is only stronger after another assassination attempt,” he wrote. “I am safe and sound and no one was hurt. Thank God! But there are people in this world who will do whatever it takes to stop us.”

JD Vance, his running mate, expressed surprise at Donald Trump’s “good humor” after speaking with him on the phone.

“I am glad that President Trump is safe and sound,” he wrote on X. “I spoke to him before the news was made public and he was, surprisingly, in good spirits.”

“There is still a lot we don’t know, but I will hug my children very tightly tonight and say a prayer of gratitude,” he added.

Kamala Harris posted her reaction on the X account she runs as vice president.

“I have been made aware of reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his Florida property, and I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America,” she wrote.

Busy week

The alleged assassination attempt in West Palm Beach represents another dramatic twist that could change the trajectory of the presidential campaign. It comes after a difficult series of days for Donald Trump. He has been criticized not only for his performance in the Philadelphia debate, where he repeated the false and degrading story about Haitian migrants in Springfield eating cats and dogs, but also for his ties to extremist influencer Laura Loomer.

The former president had also started Sunday in a manner that was both rude and bizarre.

“I hate Taylor Swift!” he wrote in all caps on Truth Social about the music superstar whose endorsement of Kamala Harris made headlines after the Philadelphia debate.

Hours later, that mood swing was eclipsed by one of those unpredictable, even historic, moments of which the 2024 presidential campaign seems to have an inexhaustible supply.