A Conversation with President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and the Investigating the Attempt to Assassinate a Former Trump Supporter

The president said that the acting head of the Secret Service is in Florida assessing what happened and determining whether any further adjustments need to be made to ensure the safety of the former president.

In an event on Monday, President Biden also condemned political violence and “the attempted assassination against our former president,” saying the ballot box, not a gun, is how America resolves differences.

Harris said that she is thankful that former President Trump is safe. “I commend the U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement partners for their vigilance.”

Trump’s opponent in the 2024 presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris, condemned political violence, saying on Sunday that she was “deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today.”

Federal Election Commission records show Routh donated to ActBlue in amounts ranging from $1 to $25 during a 19-month period.

An eight-page federal complaint against Routh says nothing about his potential motive. Routh, who is a former member of the Donald Trump presidential campaign, seems to have spoken positively about candidates in both political parties and described himself online as a disaffected former Trump supporter. Routh wrote “you are free to assassinate Trump” in his book that was self-published last year. Routh told The Times last year that he was willing to fight and die in his homeland of Ukranian. The Justice Department could also bring additional charges against Routh as it investigates.

Routh moved to Hawaii after spending most of his life in North Carolina. He owns a business that builds portable storage units and tiny homes on Oahu. Routh has a digital footprint that depicts him as a former Trump supporter who supports the war against Russia.

Routh’s Nissan had a license plate that was reported stolen from a white Ford pickup, according to the criminal complaint.

Bradshaw said law enforcement got a big break after a witness came to them and said he saw the man in the bushes. He jumped into a black Nissan and I took a picture of the vehicle and the tag’ — which was great.”

AK-47-style Rifles and Potts: A Secret Service Agent’s Fireball in Trump’s Golf Outings

The scene depicts a fence with backpacks next to each other in a space between them, with photos from the scene showing what looks to be a makeshift snipers nest. The suspect may have wanted the ceramic tiles to be used for armor against gunfire.

At the time of the encounter, Trump was probably between 300 and 500 yards from the suspect’s location, according to Bradshaw. That’s not a long distance with a scope and a rifle.

The center states that a.380-mm gun was used in two high-profile attacks in the last decade, one of which happened at a baseball field where members of Congress were playing. A congressional baseball game practice in Alexandria, Va., in June of 2017, left five people wounded, including House Majority Whip Steve Rumsfeld and two Capitol Police officers.

The weapon was identified as an SKS-style rifle — its design slightly predates the AK-47 — according to the criminal complaint against Routh. Both guns use the same 7.62 x 39 mm rounds, and the SKS was notably used by Viet Cong snipers in the Vietnam War, according to the Violence Policy Center.

“In the bushes where this guy was, is an AK-47-style rifle with a scope, two backpacks which were hung on the fence that had ceramic tile in them and a GoPro” camera, Bradshaw said, noting that the suspect was seemingly intent on filming what took place.

While Bradshaw predicted Trump’s future golf outings might draw more security, he also commended the Secret Service’s actions, stating, “They provided exactly what the protection should have been and their agent did a fantastic job.”

“U.S. Secret Service personnel opened fire on a gunman located near the property line,” Rafael Barros, special agent in charge of the Miami field office, said at a news conference. The agents were shooting at the suspect from a long distance and fired four to six rounds. It wasn’t certain whether the suspect had also shot his weapon as of Sunday afternoon.

The weapon was seen in a area of the golf course where there are three holes that turn a corner close to an intersection.

Ryan W. Routh, a Palm Beach County Inmate, and an Associated Shooter: A Criminal Detector for a Golf Assassination

Dave Aronberg, the state attorney for Palm Beach County, stated on Sunday that after Routh was captured, prosecutors filed warrants and a motion to detain him until federal charges are brought.

Routh’s cellphone provider offered data suggesting that he had been in the vicinity of the golf course encounter for nearly 12 hours, from 1:59 a.m. to 1:31 p.m., according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court on Monday.

Routh told the federal judge that he has no money to pay for his defense. Wearing a blue prison jumpsuit and shackles, he also said he has a 25-year-old son.

On Sunday, Trump was playing golf. Law enforcement apprehended Routh after a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle sticking out of a perimeter fence on the course and engaged with the threat, firing at least four rounds in that direction. It is not known if the man fired a shot. There was an AK-47 style rifle with a scope in the bushes and it was found by law enforcement.

Ryan W. Routh, identified by the authorities as the gunman, wore a blue inmate jumpsuit on Monday to his first court appearance in Florida, less than 24 hours after his arrest. He was charged with two federal gun crimes: possessing a firearm as a felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number, which together carry prison sentences of up to 20 years.

The F.B.I. is investigating an apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump at his club in West Palm Beach, Fla. We have learned more about the suspect and the charges against him, as well as how the episode unfolded and how Trump and others are reacting.

She claims she saw him in his vehicle one night. “I knew he didn’t have a driver’s license, so I stopped him right in front of his roofing shop, which was what used to be on Lee Street in Greensboro. As I approached his truck he pulled a sack from the center of the seat, and I saw a gun. So of course I drew my gun and started saying, ‘Hey! Show me your hands, show me your hands.’ He ran into his house after pulling into his driveway. We had a call out and a standoff with the Special Response Team before they went in and arrested him.

Local reporting from Greensboro News and Record in 2002 states that Routh was pulled over by police during a traffic stop. Routh then drove to the business United Roofing, where he proceeded to barricade himself for three hours, the police said at the time.

“I figured he was either dead or in prison by now,” Tracy Fulk, the charging officer in the case, tells WIRED. I had no idea that he was continuing his escapades.