Former President Donald Trump faced a second assassination attempt while golfing at his course in Florida.
On Sunday afternoon, as Trump was golfing, Secret Service agents detected a man armed with a rifle near the course. In response, agents fired at the suspect, who subsequently fled in a vehicle but was later apprehended by law enforcement. The individual has been identified as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh from Hawaii, known for his significant online presence related to Ukraine and activism.
It is reported that he camped outside a golf course with food and a rifle for nearly 12 hours before a Secret Service agent confronted him and opened fire, according to court documents filed Monday. Authorities recovered a semiautomatic rifle equipped with a scope and discovered two backpacks containing ceramic tiles and a video camera on the scene.
After Routh’s capture, Steven Cheung, communications director for Trump’s campaign, assured the public, “President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity.”
Both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were informed of the incident. Harris expressed relief on social media, stating, “I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America.”
The attempted assassination has sparked outrage among Republicans, with Florida Representative Mike Waltz stating, “The rhetoric against President Trump, this narrative that he will be the next dictator, that he is the next Hitler coming, it has got to stop. Enough is enough.”
Law enforcement agencies are currently working to trace the origins of the weapon used.
This incident follows a prior attempt on Trump’s life in July in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he was injured when a bullet grazed his ear.
