The new alleged assassination attempt against Donald Trump while the former president was playing golf has once again put the spotlight on the Secret Service, the elite police force charged with protecting American leaders. For the second time in just over two months, an armed person managed to get within shooting distance of the Republican candidate. This time, unlike the first, the agents prevented the alleged attack in time and the suspect was charged on Monday. But President Joe Biden has acknowledged that the institution “needs more help” to be able to fulfill its mission.
A suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, was arrested in the incident after a Secret Service agent spotted the barrel of an AK-47 rifle in the bushes of the hedge surrounding the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Routh appeared in federal court on Monday to be arraigned on two preliminary charges: possession of weapons despite having been convicted of crimes, and possession of a weapon with the serial number removed.
Although both charges are relatively minor, they allow authorities to keep Routh in custody while the investigation progresses. During the investigation, new charges could be filed against the suspect, a 58-year-old construction worker who alternated his residence between Hawaii and North Carolina.
The incident has raised many questions. How was it possible for someone to get so close without being detected until almost the last moment? What were the exact plans of the suspect, who, when fleeing, abandoned the gun, two backpacks with ceramic plates and a Go-Pro camera in the bushes? Did he know that the former president would be on the golf course at that time, and on one of the holes closest to his hideout? If so, how did he know, since Trump does not disclose his private activities in advance?
At a press conference on Monday, Martin County Sheriff William Snyder, where Routh was detained, echoed these questions. “How was it possible that a guy who is not from here could walk to Trump International, find out that the president was playing golf, and approach him with a firearm?” he asked.
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The FBI has already launched an investigation into the incident, but the Secret Service is also set to conduct its own. On Monday, the agency’s acting director, Ronald Rowe, was scheduled to meet with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, the Republican candidate’s residence, visit the scene of the incident and speak with those who were with the former president at the time.
The circumstances are very different from those of the first attack on the Republican candidate, at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. Then, a series of coordination errors allowed the attacker, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, to open fire in a shootout that killed one attendee at the political event and wounded Trump in the right ear. The errors forced the resignation of the then director of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle.
Praise for the agents
This time, the officers’ actions were all praised. Trump himself posted a message of thanks on his social network, Truth. “To all law enforcement, for the incredible work they did today at Trump International to keep me safe, as the 45th president of the United States and Republican presidential candidate in the elections. The work carried out was absolutely exceptional,” he stressed.
County Sheriff Rick Bradshaw also praised the actions of the officers who, as part of security protocol, had gone ahead of the president on his tour of the golf course and examined the next holes to rule out dangers. When one of them saw the cannon appearing, they fired at least four rounds of ammunition while the suspect fled. “The officer acted very quickly” and prevented the suspect from “getting any shots fired.” “The system worked,” the sheriff insisted.
But at the same time, the incident has highlighted the difficulties the Secret Service faces in fulfilling its protective mission. In an election year, its agents are barely able to cope with escorting the president, the four main candidates and their families.
In separate statements, President Biden and Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris have joined in praising the corps and pledged to work to provide the resources the service needs to fulfill its mission.
Biden reiterated that commitment on Monday, in statements to the media before traveling to Philadelphia to speak at a meeting of historically black colleges. “One thing I want to make clear is that the Secret Service needs more help,” he stressed. Congress, the body responsible for approving federal budgets, must give the green light to more funding for the institution.
“Congress must respond to that need,” Biden said in his remarks at the White House before setting off. The president also expressed his joy that Trump was unharmed. “Thank God he is okay,” he said.
