After former President Donald Trump was saved from a second assassination attempt Sunday, some like U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis are frustrated with what is starting to become a recurring theme of the 2024 presidential election build-up.
“The American people have the right to decide this election at the ballot box, and our nation’s leaders need to do everything to ensure our presidential candidates are out of harms (sic) way,” Lummis posted on X (formerly Twitter).
On Sunday, U.S. Secret Service agents spotted a person concealed and holding a rifle in some bushes at Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Secret Service shot at the man, Ryan Routh, 58, who fled and was taken into custody during a traffic stop a short time later.
Trump was a few hundred yards away when the gunfire rang out and was not hurt in the incident.
“I am deeply disturbed that President Trump faced a second assassination attempt today,” Lummis said in a separate post on X. “There is no place for political violence in our country.”
U.S. Sen. John Barrasso also expressed relief that Trump is doing well and that, “May God continue to look over President Trump.”
“I’m glad President Trump is unharmed,” he said. “Thank you to law enforcement who acted quickly to keep President Trump safe.”
According to The New York Times, Trump’s friends and aides described him as shocked at the attempt on his life, but also said he was already cracking jokes about it later in the day Sunday. In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump thanked the Secret Service and local law enforcement for keeping him safe.
He Waited 12 Hours
According to a criminal complaint filed against Routh, cellphone data indicates he was lurking in the woods in the vicinity of Trump’s golf course for roughly 12 hours before Secret Service spotted him.
Secret Service already came under fire after the first assassination attempt on Trump in July that nearly took his life when speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
At that event, a gunman was able to fire multiple rounds at Trump, grazing his ear with one of the bullets, while another flew in close proximity to his head.
New questions are already being asked of the agency, with President Joe Biden telling reporters Monday that the Secret Service “needs more help” from Congress.
Routh is a Hawaii resident with a history of making threats and inciting violence, according to the Times. In 2023, he expressed intense interest in the Ukraine War and said he wanted to recruit Afghan soldiers to fight there.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested that federal investigators might have a conflict of interest in investigating the second assassination because of their role in prosecuting multiple lawsuits against Trump.
“Those same agencies that are prosecuting Trump in that jurisdiction are now going to be investigating this?” the Republican governor questioned. “That may not be the best thing for this country.”
Dangerous Rhetoric
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Trump blamed Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ rhetoric for the attack, while at the same time using charged rhetoric of his own, calling Democrats “the enemy from within” and “the real threat.”
Harris said she was “deeply disturbed” by the second attack on Trump’s life and condemned “political violence.” She also reinforced Biden’s pledge to “ensure the Secret Service has every resource” to do its mission.
Hours after the FBI announced the assassination attempt Sunday, X and Tesla owner Elon Musk made a post, which he has since deleted, suggesting it was odd that nobody has tried to kill Biden or Harris.
Shortly after the assassination attempt, Senate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York posted to X, "Extreme MAGA Republicans are the party of a national abortion ban and Trump’s Project 2025. We must stop them."
In response to Jeffries’ post, Barrasso said, “Enough of the Democrats’ radical rhetoric.”
Secret Service Questions
A Secret Service agent was one hole ahead of Trump on the golf course when the barrel of Routh’s gun was spotted.
Secret Service has significantly bolstered Trump’s protective detail after coming under intense criticism for the protection it offered him in the first assassination attempt, which led to the resignation of the former head of the agency Barrasso chased down then Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle at the Republican National Convention in July, demanding answers about how the event was handled.
People on both sides of the aisle have argued Trump needs more protection.
Sheriff Ric Bradhsaw of Palm Beach County, Florida, said that Trump still retains a protective detail smaller than the one given to a sitting president, which limits the protections that the Secret Service and its local partners can provide.
The Trump campaign has not announced any changes to his schedule for the week.
Sunday's incident raises more questions about Trump's protection.
“In the past two months, we have seen unprecedented failures from the U.S. Secret Service," said U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyoming. "Congress has established a committee to investigate the failures of the first assassination attempt and it is unfathomable that we now have a second to investigate.
"We will investigate this incident and we will hold accountable those who are risking the safety of President Trump."
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
