GOP furious about potential assassination attempt: ‘They are going to keep trying to kill Trump’
Condemnations of political violence from various factions soon transitioned into a blame-game among parties.
TroibNews 
Two months ago, Republicans transformed the first assassination attempt against Donald Trump into a rallying point. In response to what could have been a second attempt, they exhibited a blend of defiance, outrage, and unfounded accusations.
Although the suspect's motive remained unclear as of Sunday night, many Republicans quickly reacted to the incident involving the Secret Service opening fire on an individual who appeared with an AK-47-style rifle near Trump’s golf course in southern Florida. They once again accused Democrats of jeopardizing Trump’s safety by portraying the GOP nominee as a threat to democracy.
“This rhetoric against President Trump, this narrative that he will be the next dictator, that he is the next Hitler coming, it has got to stop. Enough is enough,” Rep. Mike Waltz stated during an interview with Fox News on Sunday. “And when you have this narrative coming from the left, from [the] media, from elected officials, even, that Trump has to be stopped by any means necessary, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that these people are being radicalized and taking action like this.”
Some allies of the former president adopted even more foreboding tones.
“They are going to keep trying to kill Trump. This is only beginning,” asserted Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on X. “This stops only when we win in November.”
Trump's campaign did not specify a motive in its statement regarding the incident. In other campaign communications on Sunday, Trump urged for “unity” and “peace.”
Having escaped injury on Sunday, Trump faced the threat of another attempt in vastly different circumstances than when a gunman attacked his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, injuring the former president and two others while resulting in an attendee’s death. In that July incident, a blood-splattered Trump rose from the ground, fist raised, embodying defiance with his “fight, fight, fight” battle cry that resonated at the following week’s nominating convention. Republicans, usually heavily fragmented, largely unified in support of him. Some even posited that the assassination attempt had effectively secured the election for Trump. The political discourse and the presidential campaign nearly came to a standstill before quickly reverting to normal partisan rivalry.
After Sunday’s incident, the former president also presented a defiant posture, with his campaign issuing messages stating “MY RESOLVE IS STRONGER AFTER ANOTHER ATTEMPT ON MY LIFE” and “I WILL NEVER SURRENDER.”
Republicans quickly aligned with him. Following his visit to Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate later on Sunday, House Speaker Mike Johnson posted on X: “No leader in American history has endured more attacks and remained so strong and resilient. He is unstoppable.”
However, unlike the previous incident, there was no dramatic image of Trump portraying him as a near-martyr to galvanize support—only a photograph shared on social media showing Johnson and Trump both making his signature thumbs-up pose. Trump is now politically weaker against a new opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. While Harris and President Joe Biden were informed about the situation and expressed relief that Trump was unharmed, Democrats continued their campaign activities without interruption.
Within hours of the Sunday incident, widespread condemnations of political violence from across the political spectrum shifted toward partisan finger-pointing.
Rep. Brian Mast labeled Democrats’ rhetoric “beyond evil” in a post targeting MSNBC and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who earlier critiqued “Extreme MAGA Republicans” for limiting abortion access. Another Florida Republican, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, also attributed responsibility to “the radical left” for fostering “irresponsible rhetoric” that is “causing people to get hurt.”
The response from Republicans echoed that of the first assassination attempt against Trump, including Ohio Sen. JD Vance—who was not yet Trump’s running mate—wrongly linking the rally shooting to the Biden campaign.
Unlike in July, this latest incident is perceived as “supercharged,” according to Matthew Bartlett, a GOP strategist and former Trump administration appointee. “The right seems to be even further aggrieved — or believes that this election they’re running against something that will do anything to stop a political agenda.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who previously competed with Trump for the GOP presidential nomination and has since endorsed him, announced on Sunday that the state would launch its own investigation into the incident.
Republican lawmakers and Trump allies called for increased security for the former president. Trump’s Secret Service protection was enhanced after the Butler shooting, but Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw acknowledged during a Sunday news conference that security around Trump is not as stringent as it would have been if he were still the sitting president.
“This must change,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who himself survived a shooting during a congressional baseball practice, posted on X. “Secret Service must up their level of protection of him to their FULL capabilities.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham indicated that “it is time to increase resources” for the Secret Service and urged that the agency revert to being under the Treasury Department rather than the Department of Homeland Security, where it currently operates. Waltz, a Florida representative involved in the congressional task force examining the Butler assassination attempt, expressed expectations that the Secret Service would inform lawmakers “this week.”
In a statement on Sunday night, Biden mentioned he has “directed my team to continue to ensure that Secret Service has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety.”
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
Although the suspect's motive remained unclear as of Sunday night, many Republicans quickly reacted to the incident involving the Secret Service opening fire on an individual who appeared with an AK-47-style rifle near Trump’s golf course in southern Florida. They once again accused Democrats of jeopardizing Trump’s safety by portraying the GOP nominee as a threat to democracy.
“This rhetoric against President Trump, this narrative that he will be the next dictator, that he is the next Hitler coming, it has got to stop. Enough is enough,” Rep. Mike Waltz stated during an interview with Fox News on Sunday. “And when you have this narrative coming from the left, from [the] media, from elected officials, even, that Trump has to be stopped by any means necessary, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that these people are being radicalized and taking action like this.”
Some allies of the former president adopted even more foreboding tones.
“They are going to keep trying to kill Trump. This is only beginning,” asserted Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on X. “This stops only when we win in November.”
Trump's campaign did not specify a motive in its statement regarding the incident. In other campaign communications on Sunday, Trump urged for “unity” and “peace.”
Having escaped injury on Sunday, Trump faced the threat of another attempt in vastly different circumstances than when a gunman attacked his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, injuring the former president and two others while resulting in an attendee’s death. In that July incident, a blood-splattered Trump rose from the ground, fist raised, embodying defiance with his “fight, fight, fight” battle cry that resonated at the following week’s nominating convention. Republicans, usually heavily fragmented, largely unified in support of him. Some even posited that the assassination attempt had effectively secured the election for Trump. The political discourse and the presidential campaign nearly came to a standstill before quickly reverting to normal partisan rivalry.
After Sunday’s incident, the former president also presented a defiant posture, with his campaign issuing messages stating “MY RESOLVE IS STRONGER AFTER ANOTHER ATTEMPT ON MY LIFE” and “I WILL NEVER SURRENDER.”
Republicans quickly aligned with him. Following his visit to Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate later on Sunday, House Speaker Mike Johnson posted on X: “No leader in American history has endured more attacks and remained so strong and resilient. He is unstoppable.”
However, unlike the previous incident, there was no dramatic image of Trump portraying him as a near-martyr to galvanize support—only a photograph shared on social media showing Johnson and Trump both making his signature thumbs-up pose. Trump is now politically weaker against a new opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. While Harris and President Joe Biden were informed about the situation and expressed relief that Trump was unharmed, Democrats continued their campaign activities without interruption.
Within hours of the Sunday incident, widespread condemnations of political violence from across the political spectrum shifted toward partisan finger-pointing.
Rep. Brian Mast labeled Democrats’ rhetoric “beyond evil” in a post targeting MSNBC and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who earlier critiqued “Extreme MAGA Republicans” for limiting abortion access. Another Florida Republican, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, also attributed responsibility to “the radical left” for fostering “irresponsible rhetoric” that is “causing people to get hurt.”
The response from Republicans echoed that of the first assassination attempt against Trump, including Ohio Sen. JD Vance—who was not yet Trump’s running mate—wrongly linking the rally shooting to the Biden campaign.
Unlike in July, this latest incident is perceived as “supercharged,” according to Matthew Bartlett, a GOP strategist and former Trump administration appointee. “The right seems to be even further aggrieved — or believes that this election they’re running against something that will do anything to stop a political agenda.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who previously competed with Trump for the GOP presidential nomination and has since endorsed him, announced on Sunday that the state would launch its own investigation into the incident.
Republican lawmakers and Trump allies called for increased security for the former president. Trump’s Secret Service protection was enhanced after the Butler shooting, but Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw acknowledged during a Sunday news conference that security around Trump is not as stringent as it would have been if he were still the sitting president.
“This must change,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who himself survived a shooting during a congressional baseball practice, posted on X. “Secret Service must up their level of protection of him to their FULL capabilities.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham indicated that “it is time to increase resources” for the Secret Service and urged that the agency revert to being under the Treasury Department rather than the Department of Homeland Security, where it currently operates. Waltz, a Florida representative involved in the congressional task force examining the Butler assassination attempt, expressed expectations that the Secret Service would inform lawmakers “this week.”
In a statement on Sunday night, Biden mentioned he has “directed my team to continue to ensure that Secret Service has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety.”
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
