Donald
Trump was the target of what the FBI said “appears to be an attempted
assassination” at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday (September 15), just
nine weeks after the Republican presidential nominee survived another attempt
on his life. The former president said he was safe and well, and authorities
held a man in custody.
U.S.
Secret Service agents stationed a few holes up from where Trump was playing
noticed the muzzle of an AK-style rifle sticking through the shrubbery that
lines the course, roughly 400 yards away.
An
agent fired and the gunman dropped the rifle and fled in an SUV, leaving the
firearm behind along with two backpacks, a scope used for aiming and a GoPro
camera, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said. The man was later stopped
by law enforcement in a neighboring county.
He
had a calm, flat demeanor and showed little emotion when he was stopped and
didn’t question why he was pulled over, according Martin County Sheriff William
Snyder.
“He
never asked, ‘what is this about?’ Obviously, law enforcement with long rifles,
blue lights, a lot going on. He never questioned it,” Snyder said.
It
was the latest jarring moment in a campaign year marked by unprecedented
upheaval. On July 13, Trump was shot during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania,
and a bullet grazed his ear. Eight days later, Democratic President Joe Biden
withdrew from the race, giving way for Vice President Kamala Harris to become
the party’s nominee.
And
it spawned new questions about Secret Service protective operations after the
agency’s admitted failures in preventing the assassination attempt this summer.
In
an email to supporters, Trump said: “There were gunshots in my vicinity, but
before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first:
I AM SAFE AND WELL!” He wrote: “Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER
SURRENDER!”
He
returned to Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Palm Beach where he lives,
according to a person familiar with Trump’s movements who was not authorized to
discuss them publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
It
was not immediately clear whether the development would affect his campaign
schedule. Trump was set to speak from Florida about cryptocurrency live on
Monday night on the social media site X. He planned a town hall Tuesday in
Flint, Michigan, followed by a rally Wednesday on New York’s Long Island.
An
email to Trump campaign staffers obtained by AP said, “This is not a matter
that we take lightly. Your safety is always our top priority. We ask that you
remain vigilant in your daily comings and goings.”
“As
we enter the last 50 days of President Trump’s campaign, we must remember that
we will only be able save America from those who seek to destroy it by working
together as one team.”
Biden
and Harris were briefed on the matter and Harris said in a statement that
“violence has no place in America.”
Biden
echoed that thought in his own statement and said he had directed his team to
ensure the Secret Service “has every resource, capability and protective
measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety.”
In
the aftermath, Trump checked in with allies, including running mate Ohio Sen.
JD Vance, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and several Fox News hosts. House
Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday evening he had spent the past few hours with
Trump and called him “unstoppable.”
Fox
News host Sean Hannity recounted on air his conversation with Trump and the
former president’s golf partner, Steve Witkoff.
They
told Hannity they had been on the fifth hole and about to go up to putt when
they heard a “pop pop, pop pop.” Within seconds, he said Witkoff recounted,
Secret Service agents “pounced” on Trump and “covered him” to protect him.
Trump
had returned to Florida this weekend from a West Coast swing that included a
Friday night rally in Las Vegas and a Utah fundraiser. His campaign had not
announced any public plans for Trump on Sunday. He often spends the morning
playing golf.
Trump
has had a stepped-up security footprint since the assassination attempt in
July. When he is at Trump Tower in New York, parked dump trucks have formed a
wall outside the building. At outdoor rallies, he now speaks from behind
bulletproof glass.
The
Florida golf course was partially shut down for Trump as he played, but there
are several areas around the perimeter of the property where golfers are
visible from the fence line. Secret Service agents and officers in golf carts
and on ATVs generally secure the area several holes ahead and behind Trump when
he plays. Agents also usually bring an armored vehicle onto the course to
shelter Trump quickly should a threat arise.
The
Palm Beach County sheriff said the entire golf course would have been lined
with law enforcement if Trump were the president, but because he is not,
“security is limited to the areas that the Secret Service deems possible.”
“I
would imagine that the next time he comes to the golf course, there will
probably be a little more people around the perimeter,” Bradshaw said. “But the
Secret Service did exactly what they should have done, they provided exactly
what the protection should have been and their agent did a fantastic job.”
Former
presidents and their spouses have Secret Service protection for life, but the
security around former presidents varies according to threat levels and
exposure, with the toughest measures typically being taken in the immediate
aftermath of their leaving office.
Trump’s
protective detail has been higher than some other former presidents because of
his high visibility and his campaign to seek the White House again.
The
man in custody was Ryan Routh, three law enforcement officials told the AP. The
officials who identified the suspect spoke on the condition of anonymity
because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
Records
show Routh, 58, lived in North Carolina for most of his life before moving to
Hawaii in 2018. In 2020, he made a social media post backing Trump’s
reelection, but in more recent years his posts have expressed support for Biden
and Harris.
Routh
tried to recruit Afghan soldiers fleeing the Taliban to fight in Ukraine, and
spent several months in the country, according to an interview with The New
York Times last year.
The
FBI was leading the investigation and working to determine any motive. Attorney
General Merrick Garland was receiving regular updates. Agents with the Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were helping investigate.
“The
FBI has responded to West Palm Beach Florida and is investigating what appears
to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump,” the bureau said.
Florida
Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, said the state will independently investigate
the matter, posting on X that, “The people deserve the truth about the would be
assassin and how he was able to get within 500 yards of the former president
and current GOP nominee.”
News
reporters were not with Trump on Sunday. Bucking tradition, Trump’s campaign
has not arranged to have a protective pool of reporters travel with him, as is
standard for major party nominees and for the president. Harris does not have a
protective pool at all times, but does allow reporters to travel with her for
public events.
Snyder,
the Martin County sheriff, said the suspect was apprehended within minutes of
the FBI, Secret Service and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office putting out a
“very urgent BOLO” — or “be on the lookout” alert.
Snyder
said his deputies “immediately flooded” northbound I-95 and “one of my road
patrol units saw the vehicle, matched the tag and we set up on the vehicle,”
Snyder said, “We pinched in on the car, got it safely stopped and got the
driver in custody.”