Earlier this summer, on July 13 at a Trump 2024 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the former President was shot at by a 20-year-old shooter by the name of Thomas Matthew Crooks – who was on an unprotected rooftop armed with an AR-15-style rifle. Shots erupted at the rally, sending many in the audience into shock – with some ducking, others fleeing, and some even jumping in alongside the Secret Service to protect the former President from the incoming gunfire.
We never thought this would happen again anytime soon, but sure enough, it has. On September 15th, former President Trump was at his golf course property in West Palm Beach, Florida, golfing between the 5th and 6th holes of the course. That’s when a then-unknown assailant began to open fire in the general vicinity of the former President – with the Secret Service acting quickly and taking Trump to a safe location. Shortly after the shooting, Trump’s campaign released a statement confirming his safety following the shooting, stating “President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity. No further details at the time” which alleviated many of his supporters’ fears that he may have been injured or even assassinated, just 64 days after he was shot in the ear at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The suspect, 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh, was arrested by law enforcement at the scene, with the investigation into his motive still ongoing. Shortly after the arrest was made, the FBI declared that they were investigating the incident as an attempted assassination of the former President. And while the investigation is still ongoing, the motive has been questioned – with certain right-wing personalities like the heavily controversial Laura Loomer claiming that the Democratic Party and Harris-Walz campaign were behind this attempt, as well as the one in July. Those rumors have yet to be proven and are not based on any substantial or factual evidence. Routh seems to have likely been further right than the former President, given his revoked support of the former President, along with his support of his former opponent Ramaswamy and his unaffiliated voter registration status. Although this has not been confirmed by the FBI, this is the most likely outcome that can be backed up with evidence mainly consisting of Routh’s posts on Twitter, as well as his voter registration status.
However, something evident that has been proven by both this most recent attempt, as well as the attempt back in July, is the rise in political violence in America. Something that you would only expect to see in third-world countries that have severe political division and rebellions, is now happening in the United States of America. Assassinations and attempts have happened in our country previously, but we have never had them occur at this magnitude. With the evident rise in political polarization in America, especially with a very heated election season on the horizon, it is to be expected that these incidents might occur – but the magnitude at which they are happening is something unpredictable and shocking to millions of Americans.
Vice President Harris already came out with a statement, denouncing political violence in America, stating that she is “disturbed” by the attempt on the former President’s life. The FBI has yet to make any additional comments or reveal any additional information, as the investigation is still underway and will likely continue to happen past the election in November.
On the morning of September 16, the day following the attempt, the suspected shooter was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number – meaning that the serial number on the firearm was removed from the weapon intentionally, which is strictly against federal law as it often proves criminal intent. No other updates are available at the time of the writing of this article.
