Just two months after a gunman nearly killed Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania, a second assassination attempt Sunday on the former president further rattled a campaign that has already seen unprecedented twists and turns.
So far the political impact is unclear, unlike the first attempt, which prompted a flurry of reactions from lawmakers around the world and the business community, while prompting some top observers to predict a Trump victory in November.
“My ‘controversial’ take on the gunshots at Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach today: We should wait until the facts are established before we respond,” said Republican Party polling expert. Frank Luntz posted on X.
The latest incident occurred while Trump was golfing at his club in West Palm Beach, Florida, with Steve Witkoff, a friend and top donor.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters that a Secret Service agent conducting a security sweep a few holes away spotted a gun barrel with a scope protruding from a fence and opened fire on the suspect. Trump was about 300 to 500 yards away from the incident.
A witness saw a man fleeing the scene and took a photo of his car, which Bradshaw described as a black Nissan. With that information, authorities tracked the vehicle to Interstate 95, where the Martin County Sheriff’s Office arrested him.
Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder told reporters that the suspect was “relatively calm” while in custody. “He didn’t show much emotion. Never asked, ‘What is this about?’”
Bradshaw said the witness was taken to Martin County and identified the suspect, later found to be Ryan Wesley Routh. An AK-47-style rifle, a backpack and a Go-Pro camera were found near a fence outside Trump’s golf club.
The Secret Service said Trump is safe, and the FBI announced it is investigating the incident as an assassination attempt.
Protecting Trump’s Secret Service
Because Trump is not a sitting president, Bradshaw said his security was more limited, although he suggested it would be further increased. After the shooting in Pennsylvania, the situation became tense.
“If we did, we’d have this entire golf course surrounded. But because he is not, security is limited to the areas that the Secret Service deems possible,” he explained during the press conference. “So I imagine the next time he comes to the golf course there will probably be a few more people around the perimeter. But the Secret Service did exactly what they should have done.”
Meanwhile, there are less than two months left before Election Day and the polls remain tight. That despite a chaotic race. A week after Trump’s first assassination attempt, President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who quickly secured Democratic Party support, picked running mate Tim Walz and raised more than $500 million.
Last week, the first and only debate took place between Trump and Harris, with Harris widely considered the winner.
Markets and the campaign
Financial markets have been volatile as they track all the wild swings in the campaign. After Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Trump in June, the “Trump trade” saw the dollar and crypto rise while US bonds fell.
The first assassination attempt and Trump’s defiant response to it further fueled that trade. Hours after the shooting, Tesla CEO Elon Musk even announced his support for Trump. The tech billionaire has since helped create a pro-Trump super PAC and even interviewed him on his X social media platform.
But Harris’ rise to the top of the ticket created a wave of enthusiasm among Democrats who were tied with Trump in the polls, bringing the Trump trade to a standstill.
As of Sunday evening, U.S. stock futures were little changed. The S&P 500 was flat, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq were 0.1% lower. Bitcoin fell 0.66% to $59,441, and Brent crude futures rose 0.34% to $71.85 per barrel.
Markets were already gearing up for a critical week as the Federal Reserve met on Tuesday and Wednesday amid Wall Street widely expecting Chairman Jerome Powell to announce a rate cut amid signs of slowing inflation and a cooling labor market.
