Suspect in apparent Trump assassination attempt charged with 2 firearm counts

• Ryan Wesley Routh was charged with two firearm offenses in federal court on Monday. If convicted on the two firearms charges, he could face a maximum sentence of 20 years.
  
• Routh, 58, was armed with an AK-47-style rifle and was allegedly 300-500 yards away from former President Donald Trump at Trump International Golf Course when members of the Secret Service detail spotted him and opened fire, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. The head of the Secret Service said the suspect "did not fire or get off any shots at our agent" and did not have a line of sight to Trump.
• Routh was pulled over and detained about 50 miles away after a law enforcement alert was issued for the black Nissan with the license plate number.  He did not resist when he was taken into custody.
• Law enforcement officials say they found the rifle, a scope, two backpacks with ceramic tile and a GoPro camera in the bushes at the golf course.
• Several people who have spoken with Trump say he was in good spirits Sunday night and has recounted what happened to multiple friends, family members and advisers. He thanked the Secret Service for their response. He also joked that he wishes he could have finished his round of golf. He has told others he is determined to keep on campaigning this week.
  

Trump says he heard shots fired by Secret Service agents

Former President Trump recalled Sunday's apparent assassination attempt during an event on the social media platform X on Monday evening, saying he heard the shots from Secret Service agents.

The former president said he and a friend he was golfing with "we heard shots being fired in the air, and I guess probably four or five, and it sounded like bullets. But what do I know about that? But Secret Service knew immediately it was bullets, and they grabbed me."

"So we're in the group, and everybody just, we got into the carts and we moved along pretty good," he said.

Trump said an agent "had seen a barrel of a AK-47, which is a very powerful gun, rifle, and he started shooting at the barrel, he started shooting in the bushes. He could only see the barrel."

Reflecting on the July assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, Trump said, "That was some crazy day, and yesterday you had another one with a different result, actually much better result," because nobody was killed or wounded.

One person was killed and two others were wounded by the shooter in the July attempt.

Trump also said of President Biden, "He was very nice, that he called up to make sure that I was OK."

Jake Rosen contributed reporting.

Suspect in Trump's apparent assassination attempt has criminal history

Alleged Trump assassination attempt suspect Ryan Routh had other brushes with the law prior to Sunday's incident. He also traveled across the globe, volunteering to fight in the war on behalf of Ukraine. Scott MacFarlane has new reporting on what we know about the suspect.

Vance calls for "reduction in the ridiculous and inflammatory political rhetoric"

Former President Donald Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance, said the heated political rhetoric needs to be turned down, blaming Democrats for stoking violence against Trump when they call him a "fascist" and claim his reelection would end democracy in the U.S.

"I do think that we should take this opportunity to call for a reduction in the ridiculous and inflammatory political rhetoric coming from too many corners of our politics," he said while campaigning in Atlanta, Georgia.

Vance argued there's a "big difference between conservatives and liberals" because "no one has tried to kill Kamala Harris in the last couple of months, and two people now have tried to kill Donald Trump in the last couple of months.

Law enforcement has not determined a motive in Sunday's incident or the attempted assassination in July. The Sunday incident is being investigated as an attempted assassination.

President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have both condemned the assassination attempts and said there is no place for violence in American politics.

Taurean Small contributed reporting.

Trump says he had "very nice call" with Biden

Trump described his call with President Biden as a "very nice call." In a statement to CBS News, he said the two discussed "Secret Service protection."

Trump and Biden spoke Monday, White House official says

President Biden and former President Trump spoke on Monday after Mr. Biden initially said Trump was unavailable when he tried to call.

"President Biden just spoke with former President Trump, and conveyed his relief that he is safe," a White House official told CBS News in a statement. "The two shared a cordial conversation and former President Trump expressed his thanks for the call."

Secret Service chief says agency didn't sweep full perimeter because Trump's golf outing was unscheduled

The Secret Service did not sweep the full golf course ahead of Trump's visit because acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said Trump's golf outing was unscheduled. So, Rowe said, they exercised an "emergency" plan.

"The president wasn't even really supposed to go there," Rowe said. "It was not on his official schedule. And so we put together a security plan, and that security plan worked."

Routh's cellphone was in the area for about 12 hours on the day of the incident, according to authorities.

FBI special agent says DNA has been found on gear at the scene

Jeffrey Veltri, the FBI special agent in charge of the Miami field office, said authorities are reviewing Routh's background, his online activity and objects found at the scene.

"We view this as extremely serious, and are determined to provide answers as to what led up to the events which took place," Veltri said at a briefing Monday afternoon.

Veltri said DNA has been collected from the rifle and other items found at the scene, which have been sent to an FBI lab at Quantico, Virginia, for analysis. Veltri said they'll be working to compile the subject's movements leading up to Sunday's incident. Veltri also said Routh had an "active" online presence, and they're working to review his activity.

Veltri said investigators are using all available resources and that the FBI and Secret Service are still in the process of interviewing people.

Secret Service chief says protective elements put in place after Pennsylvania rally "are working"

Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said the agency is using protective methodologies and assets put in place after the attempt on Trump's life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. And Rowe suggested Sunday's incident at the golf course is proof that those plans are working.

"We constantly evaluate based on threat," Rowe said. "And yesterday, what we showed is that our agents and our protective methodologies — and there's a lot of tactical assets in place, things that have been put in place as a result of what happened 60 days ago — those elements are working. And that demonstrates the redundancies that we have. And so, we constantly evaluate. We'll of course look at this and see what lessons learned from it, but as of right now, we are constantly evaluating that threat, and if we need to ratchet up additionally, we will."

Rowe said the suspect did not have a line of sight to Trump.

Secret Service chief says suspect "did not fire or get off any shots at our agent"

Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said the suspect "did not fire or get off any shots at our agent" — the clearest statement from law enforcement officials yet that Routh did not fire a gun during the incident.

Security level at Mar-a-Lago is the "highest it could possibly be now," sheriff says

In a news conference, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said the security level at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate is the "highest it could possibly be now," following Sunday's apparent assassination attempt, which occurred at the former president's golf course just a few miles away.

Biden administration seeks to increase flexibility in Secret Service funding

The Biden administration has asked Congress for special permission to increase its spending on the Secret Service in the coming weeks, even if Congress passes only a short-term spending bill to avert a government shutdown.

Multiple sources told CBS News a so-called anomaly request was submitted in August to congressional committees by the Biden administration. In the request, the administration's Office of Management and Budget warns that without some flexibility to ratchet up spending on the agency in the coming weeks, "the Secret Service would have insufficient resources to sustain and enhance protective operations."

Congressional staffers told CBS News there are increasing concerns about the level of funding for the agency. The uncertainty over how much additional funding the Secret Service will need has further knotted negotiations and deliberations over government spending for the new fiscal year, which starts in October.

In a letter sent a week ago to a Senate subcommittee, the acting director of the Secret Service, Ronald Rowe, said "Increased mission requirements of the Secret Service necessitate additional resources."

Read more here .

Trump appearing live on social media from Mar-a-Lago tonight

The former president says he'll appear live on X, formerly known as Twitter, from his Mar-a-Lago estate at 8 p.m. ET. Trump's last live appearance on X was plagued with technical difficulties.

Although he didn't say in the post what he planned to discuss, Trump said last week that he'd announce Monday at 8 p.m. the debut of a new cryptocurrency platform called World Liberty Financial that will be controlled by sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. In recent weeks, the Trumps have been promoting the endeavor on social media, touting it as "the future of crypto."

Trump's 18-year-old son Barron, a first-year student at New York University, is identified as the project's "DeFi visionary," according to a white paper on the project obtained by cryptocurrency news site CoinDesk . DeFi, short for "decentralized finance," is a term that refers to financial services offered through public blockchains

Bodycam footage shows Routh being taken into custody

Body camera footage released Monday shows Routh's arrest on a Florida roadside.

The bodycam footage from the Martin County Sheriff's Office shows a group of sheriff's deputies in bulletproof vests with guns out yelling at Routh after his SUV was pulled over on I-95, about 50 miles north of the Trump International Golf Course.

In the video, Routh is directed to move to his right and then walk backward. The deputies then took Routh into custody.

Read more here .

Routh could still face more charges

As the federal probe into the apparent assassination attempt continues, Routh could face additional charges, depending on what the investigation uncovers. He is so far charged with two firearms offenses.

Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a statement saying the FBI is "continuing to investigate what appears to be an assassination attempt of former President Trump that occurred yesterday in Florida," and, "we are grateful that the former president is safe."

"The entire Justice Department — including the FBI, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida, and the National Security Division — is coordinating closely with our law enforcement partners on the ground," Garland said.

Biden says Secret Service assessing whether "further adjustments" needed to ensure Trump's safety

President Biden began his remarks at the 2024 National HBCU Week Conference in Philadelphia on Monday by commending the Secret Service for protecting his predecessor.

"Before I begin, I want to make a quick reference on the attempted assassination against our former president in Florida yesterday," Mr. Biden said. "I commend the Secret Service for the expert handling of the situation."

He said 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 our former president. Let me just say, there is no ... no place for political violence in America. None. Zero. Never."

After the attempted assassination of Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, Mr. Biden delivered a rare Oval Office address to condemn the violent attempt on Trump's life and call for unity.