Local authorities said U.S. Secret Service agents protecting Trump shot a person who aimed a scoped AK rifle at him as Trump played at one among his golf courses in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Here are five things you need to find out about what happened to the Republican presidential candidate on Sunday.
Who is the suspect?
Police officials said the person who pointed the rifle at him and was arrested was Ryan Wesley Routh. Officials identified the suspect to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to talk in regards to the ongoing investigation.
The suspect dropped the weapon and fled in an SUV. He was later arrested in a neighboring county, authorities said. The motive is unclear. Local authorities said the shooter had two backpacks hanging from a fence and a GoPro camera.
According to online records from the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction, Routh was convicted of possession of a weapon of mass destruction in 2002.
The files don’t provide any details in regards to the case. But a News & Record A 2002 report said a person with the identical name was arrested after a three-hour standoff with police. The report said he was stopped during a traffic stop, put his hand on a gun and barricaded himself inside a roofing business. Routh was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and possessing a weapon of mass destruction, “which is defined as a fully automatic machine gun,” in line with the News & Record.
CNN also reported that Routh, 58, lived in Hawaii but in addition worked as a construction employee in North Carolina.
He has a criminal record of eight arrests, and in his social media posts he claims to have been involved in Ukraine’s war against Russia and to have tried to recruit people to fight on Kyiv’s side.
His son Oran Routh, meanwhile, said the crimes he was accused of didn’t match what he knew about his father.
“Ryan is my father and I have no comment on this other than a character profile of him as a loving and caring father and an honest, hard-working man. I don’t know what happened in Florida and I hope things were simply blown out of proportion because from what little I’ve heard, it doesn’t sound like the man I know would do anything crazy, let alone violent. He’s a good father and a great man and I hope you can portray him in an honest light,” Oran Routh said, in line with CNN.
How did that occur?
According to local authorities, the shooter was about 350 to 450 yards away from Trump, hiding within the bushes while the previous president played a round of golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said if people stay within the bushes surrounding the course, “they’re basically out of sight.” Bradshaw said the whole golf course can be lined with police if Trump were the sitting president, but because he will not be, “security is limited to the areas the Secret Service deems possible.”
Trump’s security detail is more heavily protected than that of a few of his counterparts due to his high profile and campaign for the White House. His security was beefed up days before the July Pennsylvania assassination attempt due to a death threat against Trump from Iran, U.S. officials said.
What has Trump said for the reason that attempt?
In an email to his supporters, Trump wrote: “There have been gunshots near me, but before the rumor mill gets out of control, I want you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND I AM FINE!”
His running mate, JD Vanceand U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said they spoke with Trump after the incident and each said he was in “good spirits.” Trump also spoke with several Fox News hosts.
Sean Hannity, a detailed friend of the previous president and Fox News host, said on the show that he spoke with Trump and his golf partner Steve Witkoff afterward. They told Hannity they were on the fifth hole once they heard a “pop pop, pop pop.” Within seconds, he said, Secret Service agents “pounced on” Trump and “covered him” to guard him.
Moments later, Witkoff said, Trump was taken away in a “fast cart” with steel reinforcements and other protective devices.
Hannity said Trump’s response after this happened – and when it was clear that everybody, including Witkoff, was secure – was to jokingly comment that he was sad he couldn’t finish the outlet because he was “tied and had a birdie putt.”
What does Vice President Kamala Harris say?
Harris, Trump’s Democratic opponent within the presidential election, posted on X that she had been informed of the reports of the gunshots.
“I’m glad he’s safe. Violence has no place in America.”
The White House said President Joe Biden and Harris can be kept updated on the status of the investigation. The White House added that it was “relieved” to know that Trump was secure.
What happens next?
Trump has not announced any changes to his schedule and is anticipated to talk continue to exist X from his Mar-a-Lago resort on Monday evening to unveil his sons’ crypto platform.
Meanwhile, the heads of a bipartisan congressional task force investigating the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump said they’d requested a briefing from the Secret Service.
“We are grateful that no harm came to the former president, but remain deeply concerned about political violence and condemn it in all its forms,” ​​Reps. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) and Jason Crow (D-Colo.) said in a press release. They said the duty force would supply updates.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida, who is an element of the duty force, said he would “seek answers to what happened today and what happened then.”
