By Tony Bruce and Mary Jones | Wednesday, September 18, 2024 | 7 min read
The most recent assassination attempt on former President Donald J. Trump underscores how deeply the American political landscape has been shaped by the intense anger both fueled by him and directed against him.
Within days of Trump making false claims on national television about Haitian migrants eating pet dogs and cats in an Ohio town, a wave of threats and fear swept through the community. Bomb threats targeting schools, City Hall, and other public buildings led to evacuations, spreading widespread panic.
Shortly afterward, authorities reported that a man, a self-described disillusioned former Trump supporter, armed with a semiautomatic rifle, attempted to approach Trump’s Florida golf course with apparent intent to assassinate him. The man was stopped when a Secret Service agent fired first, averting what could have been a catastrophic event.
This series of events paints a grim picture of 2024, where Trump remains both a catalyst and a target for rising political violence. In just one week, he seemed to inspire both a bomb scare and an assassination attempt, reflecting the increasing normalization of violent rhetoric in American politics. Despite the severity of these incidents, they have yet to provoke a meaningful national reckoning.
“One of the things we are most concerned about is the normalization of political violence in our system. It’s on the rise,” said Representative Jason Crow, a Democrat from Colorado and member of a bipartisan task force investigating the July 13 assassination attempt against Trump. “This is the second in two months, and it shows just how pervasive this has become.”
Senator J.D. Vance, a Republican from Ohio and Donald Trump’s running mate, echoed concerns about the escalating violence but directed much of his criticism toward the media and political establishment. “What we’re seeing here is a dangerous cycle, where the media inflames political tensions by misreporting, and it drives people to dangerous extremes,” Vance said in a statement, aligning himself with Trump’s criticism of political rhetoric from both sides. He also condemned the recent assassination attempt, calling it a “dangerous consequence of overheated political discourse.”
Meanwhile, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both condemned the recent assassination attempt, but their campaigns moved forward without pause. Just four hours after Trump was rushed into a motorcade for his protection, his finance team sent out a fundraising email with a button to donate. “My resolve is only stronger after another attempt on my life!” Trump declared in the email. Similarly, Harris’s fundraising emails continued uninterrupted.
In the days following the incident, Trump blamed Democrats for creating the hostile political climate, pointing to a shooting at a rally in Butler, Pa., in July, where he was grazed by a bullet. During the recent debate with Harris, he accused Democrats of inciting violence against him.
“He believed the rhetoric of Biden and Harris, and he acted on it,” Trump said on Fox News. “Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at while I’m trying to save the country, and they’re the ones tearing it apart.”
Although Trump accused Democrats of making him a target by labeling him a threat to democracy, his own language remained inflammatory. He referred to them as “the enemy from within” and insisted that they sought to “destroy the country.” His rhetoric was as charged as the attacks he criticized.
In a calculated response, Trump’s campaign later circulated a collection of quotes from Biden, Harris, and other Democrats, accusing them of labeling Trump as “a threat to democracy” and “a threat to this nation.” The email, however, left out the fact that during the debate just days before, Trump himself had described Democrats as the real threat to democracy.
The controversy was further fueled by Elon Musk, a vocal Trump supporter and social media owner, who posted an inflammatory message questioning why Biden and Harris had not been similarly targeted for assassination. “And no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala,” Musk wrote online, igniting outrage.
Though Musk quickly deleted the post, calling it a joke, the White House swiftly condemned it. “Violence should only be condemned, never encouraged or joked about,” said White House spokesman Andrew Bates. “This rhetoric is irresponsible.”
Political violence is not new to America. Four sitting presidents have been assassinated, and another was shot and seriously wounded. Even former presidents have been targeted, but two attempts on Trump’s life in two months stand out, particularly during an election in which he remains a leading candidate for his old office.
A parallel can be drawn to President Gerald R. Ford, who survived two assassination attempts in just two weeks in 1975. However, the current situation more strongly recalls the turbulence of 1968, when Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated just months apart. Those killings occurred during a period of widespread social unrest and violence—circumstances that many leaders today fear are reemerging.
Former President Donald Trump has increasingly used violent and provocative rhetoric as part of his campaign to return to office. Recently, he suggested that Gen. Mark Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, should face the death penalty, which drew sharp criticism. During a speech in California, Trump also advocated for shoplifters to be shot on sight, promoting harsh measures in response to crime. In the same speech, he mocked former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi by sarcastically asking how her husband, Paul Pelosi, was doing, a reference to the violent home invasion Paul Pelosi suffered, which was linked to conspiracy theories stemming from Trump’s claims about the 2020 election.
Trump’s intensifying language mirrors the tension and polarization present in U.S. political discourse, heightening concerns about the potential impact of such rhetoric on political violence and public safety.
In the lead-up to his New York civil trial on business fraud charges, Donald Trump unleashed a barrage of incendiary statements aimed at New York Attorney General Letitia James and the judge presiding over the case. Just hours before heading into court, Trump called James “corrupt and racist,” labeling her “rogue” and “out of control.” He also attacked the judge, asserting he should no longer sit on the bench. These types of statements would likely lead to contempt of court charges for another defendant, but Trump’s rhetoric continues to resonate with many of his supporters.
Trump’s followers, rather than distancing themselves, tend to embrace and amplify his combative language — as seen during events like the January 6 Capitol riot and other violent incidents. His inflammatory remarks are often viewed as a call to action by his most ardent base.
In one of the busiest weeks of Trump’s 2024 campaign, covering both coasts and key battleground states like Iowa and Michigan, the focus has increasingly shifted from policy discussions to escalating verbal attacks. Trump has repeatedly pushed false claims that many migrants are former prisoners or institutionalized in their home countries, while also comparing migrants and refugees to “vermin” who will “pour into and infest our country.” These inflammatory remarks underscore the provocative and divisive nature of his speeches, raising serious concerns about their potential to incite hostility and further deepen political polarization.
As the election draws closer and polls show Kamala Harris pulling ahead of Trump, his increasingly provocative rhetoric has sparked growing worries about its impact on his supporters and the broader political environment. Such language risks intensifying already heightened political tensions, potentially fostering a more hostile climate and inciting violence. With emotions running high, there is concern that his remarks may encourage more extreme reactions from his base, further amplifying divisions in the lead-up to the election.
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