This is how Trump and Harris responded to the new assassination attempt

On September 15th, reports began emerging suggesting there had been an apparent second assassination attempt on Donald Trump's life. However, it quickly became clear the former president was safe during the confusion over what happened. 

“I AM SAFE AND WELL! Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me. Unity. Peace. Make America Great Again,” Trump said in a statement in the wake of the incident. 

As of September 16th, we know that shots were fired the previous day at or around the Trump National Golf Club in West Palm Beach, where Newsweek noted that the former president was golfing when the shooting occurred. 

The Associated Press reported that the Secret Service fired shots at a man who had a rifle. The alleged suspect reportedly pushed his rifle through the perimeter of the Trump National Golf Club but later dropped the gun and fled the scene when he was discovered and fired upon. 

The incident was another reminder that political violence in the United States is growing but the country’s top politicians, which included Vice President Kamala Harris, tried to stress the point that such violence does not have any place in America.

Harris posted an initial message about the alleged assassination attempt on her X account that she had been briefed on the incident and expressed relief that her Republican opponent wasn’t injured in the shooting. 

“I have been briefed on reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his property in Florida, and I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America,” Harris wrote. But she also provided more in-depth comments in an official statement published by the White House. 

A Vice Presidential statement from Harris released on the same day as the shooting noted that she was “deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump” and again condemned political violence. 

“As we gather the facts, I will be clear: I condemn political violence. We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence,” the statement read. “I am thankful that former President Trump is safe.”

The Vice President's response to the possible second assassination attempt on Trump’s life less than two and a half months apart was exactly what Americans needed to hear as they faced the reality of growing political violence in their nation. Sadly, Trump was not as generous as his election rival.  

While the former president’s initial messaging called for unity, less than 24 hours after the incident Trump blamed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for the second shooting during an interview with Fox News Digital. 

“He believed the rhetoric of Biden and Harris, and he acted on it,” the former president said of the shooter while speaking with Fox News Digital according to The Hill. 

“Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at, when I am the one who is going to save the country, and they are the ones that are destroying the country — both from the inside and out.,” Trump continued. 

“They do it with a combination of rhetoric and lawsuits they wrap me up in,” Trump added. “These are the things that dangerous fools, like the shooter, listen to — that is the rhetoric they listen to, and the same with the first one.,” Trump added. 

While the motives of the shooter were still unknown as of September 16th, the comments Trump made while speaking with Fox News Digital weren’t what the country needed at a time when politicians should be calling for unity and condemning political violence. 

How the alleged assassination attempt will affect the 2024 Presidential Election is still unknown, but instead of using the situation to try and heal the rift in the country, Trump appears to be using the possible second attempt on his life to sow more division. 

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