Another apparent assassination attempt casts shadow on 2024 campaign

The man suspected of trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he was golfing has been charged with federal gun crimes. It’s the second apparent attempt on the former president’s life in just over two months, casting an ominous shadow over the 2024 presidential race. Laura Barrón-López reports.

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Geoff Bennett: Welcome to the “News Hour.”

The man suspected of trying to assassinate former President Donald Trump while he was golfing has been charged with federal gun crimes.

Amna Nawaz: It is the second apparent attempt on the former president’s life in just over two months, casting an ominous shadow over the 2024 presidential race.

Laura Barron-Lopez begins our coverage.

Laura Barron-Lopez: An FBI investigation is under way. One day after the U.S. Secret Service thwarted an apparent attempt on Donald Trump’s life just on the other side of these palm trees.

Ronald Rowe, Acting U.S. Secret Service Director: Yesterday afternoon, this country was reminded of the heightened and dynamic threat environment the United States Secret Service and its protectees face on a daily basis.

Laura Barron-Lopez: It happened while he was playing golf at his own course near Mar-a-Lago. No injuries were reported. Law enforcement remained clustered outside the perimeter throughout the night.

In Washington today, President Biden responded to what now appears to be a second assassination attempt against Trump.

Joe Biden, President of the United States: Thank God the president’s OK. But one thing I want to make clear, the Service needs more help. And I think the Congress should respond to their needs, if they, in fact, need more services.

Laura Barron-Lopez: The Secret Service said an agent had spotted the barrel of a rifle pointed from shrubbery that surrounds the golf course. It was about 300 to 500 yards away from where the former president was playing.

The agent immediately opened fire and Trump was rushed off the course. The gunman dropped his weapon without ever having fired it and fled.

Ronald Rowe: The swift action of that agent, doing his job, pushing out ahead, sweeping while the president was behind him several hundred yards and several holes away out of sight from the gunman did his job and that was what alerted the detail, and the swift action is what triggered that.

Laura Barron-Lopez: On social media last night, Trump credited the Secret Service’s — quote — “absolutely outstanding job’ for keeping him safe. The Palm Beach County sheriff said the agency did exactly what it needed to do, even if security wasn’t as tight as it could have been.

Ric Bradshaw, Palm Beach County, Florida, Sheriff: At this level that he is at right now, he’s not the city president. If he was, we would have had this higher golf course surrounded. But because he’s not, the security is limited to the areas that the Secret Service deems possible.

Laura Barron-Lopez: Soon after the initial encounter, local police and a chopper descended onto the scene. And bodycam footage showed the moment authorities arrested the suspect on a highway about 50 miles from the golf course.

A witness had tipped off police to a license plate number for the suspect’s vehicle. He was identified as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh. Officials recovered two backpacks and an SKS rifle with a scope, which were left behind on the outskirts of the golf course. And phone records show Routh spent nearly 12 hours near the property before being confronted.

Today, Routh appeared in federal court, charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and a possession of a firearm with a destroyed serial number. If convicted, he could face anywhere from five to 15 years in prison.

A look at public records and Routh social media history paints a picture of a once Trump supporter turned critic with a deep fixation Ukraine and its war with Russia. Routh self-published a 291-page book on Ukraine and global politics, where he talked about the end of his support for Trump.

He’s been interviewed several times over recent years about his support for the Ukrainian war effort, and even traveled to Kyiv in 2022 in an attempt to join the front lines.

Ryan Wesley Routh, Defendant: My initial goal was to come fight.

Laura Barron-Lopez: Routh also had a decades-long criminal history that includes several misdemeanor and felony charges. He will be back in court later this month for a bond hearing and arraignment.

In a post on X, Trump quickly blamed the incident on Democrats, specifically the so-called rhetoric of his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. And he suggested, without evidence, that violence, like the Sunday incident, would get worse unless undocumented migrants are deported.

Meanwhile, in Washington, Harris put out a statement condemning the attack, saying — quote — “We must all do our part to ensure this incident does not lead to more violence.”

A bipartisan congressional task force is already investigating the first assassination attempt on the former president, when in July a bullet grazed his ear at one of his rallies in Pennsylvania. They were briefed on Sunday’s incident by Secret Service and are awaiting more details.

Ranking Member on the Task Force Democratic Congressman Jason Crow spoke about the task force’s work this morning.

Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO): The scope of our task force was limited to investigating the Butler, Pennsylvania, incident, so there were a lot of things that went wrong there. And it’s just too early to tell whether or not those same issues were at play here or not.

Laura Barron-Lopez: It’s unclear how the incident will affect Trump’s schedule, with just 50 days of campaigning left to go.

For the “PBS NewsHour,” I’m Laura Barron-Lopez.