The alleged assassination attempt on Donald Trump in Florida has added fuel to the already explosive US presidential election campaign. The Republican candidate accused his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris and incumbent Joe Biden on Monday of inciting violence against him with their rhetoric. The arrested suspect, a staunch supporter of Ukraine in the war against Russia, was charged with illegal possession of weapons in an initial court hearing.
The attacker “believed the rhetoric of Biden and Harris and acted accordingly,” Trump told Fox News Digital. “Their rhetoric is leading to me being shot,” Trump accused the president and his vice president, without giving any further reasons. The right-wing populist, notorious for his rude rhetoric, is known for regularly inflaming the political climate with provocative and polemical statements.
Trump and Harris expressed relief on Sunday that Trump was unharmed in the incident. “Violence has no place in America,” said Harris, who is running against Trump in the presidential election on November 5.
On Monday, Biden again condemned all political violence. “I have always condemned political violence and I always will,” Biden said at an event in Philadelphia. Citizens must resolve their differences peacefully at the ballot box – and not with a weapon, he stressed.
The US authorities identified the arrested suspect as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh, who has a criminal record. US media reported that Routh worked as a construction contractor in Hawaii and had a long criminal record. According to reports, he regularly commented on current political issues in online networks, including criticism of Trump.
According to CNN, he was tried several times for tax evasion. In 2002, he was also tried in the state of North Carolina for “possession of a weapon of mass destruction.” Eight years later, he was tried there for keeping stolen goods.
On Monday, Routh appeared before a federal judge in Florida and was charged with illegal possession of a firearm while a convicted felon, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. The suspect’s next appearance is scheduled for September 23, and formal charges are expected to be filed a week later.
According to investigators, the 58-year-old, armed with a rifle, hid in the bushes on the edge of Trump’s golf course in Palm Beach on Sunday while the former president was playing golf there. Secret Service officers discovered the intruder and opened fire. He initially managed to escape, but was later arrested.
At Monday’s court hearing, Routh was charged with illegal possession of a firearm while a convicted felon and with having an unreadable serial number on the gun. During the brief hearing, he answered yes to a few questions but otherwise remained quiet.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating an “attempted assassination”. The suspect had positioned himself a few hundred meters away from Trump, which according to local sheriff Ric Bradshaw was “not a great distance” with a rifle and telescopic sight. After the incident, questions were raised as to how the man was able to be within sight of the ex-president without being hindered.
“We have to ask ourselves how an assassin could once again get so close to President Trump,” said Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik. She demanded “a clear explanation for what happened in Florida.”
The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting current and former presidents, came under massive criticism after the first assassination attempt on Trump on July 13 in the state of Pennsylvania. At that time, a man fired several shots at Trump at an election rally in the small town of Butler, which the 78-year-old only narrowly survived. The then Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle resigned as a result, and at least five officials were placed on leave.
President Biden said on Monday that the Secret Service must be strengthened. “One thing I want to make clear: The (Secret) Service needs more help, and I think Congress should respond to its needs,” Biden said in Washington. “I think we need more personnel.” US Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Monday that his agency would use “all available resources” to investigate the attempted attack.
