policy
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI said Sunday it’s investigating “an apparent assassination attempt” on Donald Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, just nine weeks after the Republican presidential candidate survived one other assassination attempt. Trump said he was secure and sound.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said U.S. Secret Service agents shot a person who pointed a scoped AK rifle on the club while Trump was on the golf course. Bradshaw said the shooter also had two backpacks hanging from a fence and a GoPro camera. He was about 350 to 450 yards from Trump and hid within the bushes while the previous president played golf on a close-by hole. The man dropped the weapon and fled in an SUV. He was later taken into custody in a neighboring county.
The incident was the most recent shocking moment in a campaign yr marked by unprecedented upheaval. It got here about two months after Trump was shot in an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania, a bullet grazing his ear. Just every week later, President Joe Biden withdrew from the race.
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In an email to his supporters, Trump wrote: “There have been gunshots near me, but before the rumor mill gets out of control, I want you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND I AM FINE!”
“Nothing will stop me. I will NEVER SURRENDER!” said the previous president.
The golf course was partially closed to Trump during his game, and agents were a couple of holes ahead of him after they noticed the person with the firearm, Bradshaw said. There are several areas across the property where golfers are visible from the fence. Secret Service agents and officers in golf carts and on ATVs typically secure the realm several holes ahead and behind Trump when he’s golfing. Agents also typically bring an armored vehicle onto the course to quickly provide protection for Trump within the event of a threat.
Trump returned to Florida this weekend from a West Coast tour that included a Friday night rally in Las Vegas and a fundraiser in Utah. His campaign had not shared Trump's plans for Sunday. He often spends the morning playing golf before eating lunch at his club, considered one of three he owns within the state.
Since the assassination attempt in July, security measures against the previous president have been stepped up. When he was at Trump Tower in New York, a row of dump trucks was parked in a wall in front of the constructing. And at outdoor rallies, he now speaks from behind a bulletproof glass fence.
According to an individual conversant in the matter, Trump was safely returned to his private Mar-a-Lago club, where he lives in neighboring Palm Beach, after the incident.
The White House said President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, have each been briefed and are being kept updated on the status of the investigation. The White House added that it was “relieved” to know that Trump was secure.
Harris said in a press release that she was “glad” that Trump was secure, adding that “violence has no place in America.”
In an X-post, Senator Lindsey Graham, RS.C, considered one of Trump's key allies in Congress, said he had spoken to Trump after the incident and that Trump was in “good spirits” and “one of the strongest people I have ever known.”
Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder said the suspect was arrested minutes after the FBI, Secret Service and Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office issued a “very urgent BOLO” alert detailing the vehicle being sought, its license plate number and an outline of the occupant.
Snyder said his officers “immediately flooded” northbound I-95, targeting every exit between the Palm Beach County border to the south and the St. Lucie County border to the north.
“One of my patrol cars saw the vehicle, found the matching license plate frame and we made our way to the vehicle,” Snyder said. “We were able to clamp down on the car, bring it to a safe stop and arrest the driver.”
Snyder told WPTV the suspect “was not armed when we got him out of the car.”
The man had a peaceful, composed demeanor and showed little emotion when he was stopped by police, Snyder said. In addition, the suspect didn’t ask why he was stopped.
“He never asked, 'What is this about?' Obviously there were police officers with long guns and flashing lights, there was a lot going on. He never questioned it,” Snyder said.
A Justice Department spokeswoman said Attorney General Merrick Garland has been briefed on the situation and receives regular updates.
The Martin County Sheriff's Office post stated that the suspect was arrested near Palm City, Florida, about 45 miles north of Trump's golf course. The northbound lanes of I-95 were closed, the Sheriff's Office said.
A message sent to campaign staff requesting information on the safety situation and whereabouts of Trump's vice presidential candidate and Senator JD Vance of Ohio didn’t receive a direct response.
Max Egusquiza of Palm Beach described the emergency response outside Trump's golf course in West Palm Beach.
“From what I saw, five black, unmarked SUVs blocked a gray Mercedes in front of the golf course. About 20 or more police cars fled from the surrounding streets,” he said.
Trump is scheduled to talk live about cryptocurrencies on social media site X on Monday night to launch his son's crypto platform. He is predicted to accomplish that from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. The former president is scheduled to return to the campaign trail on Tuesday to attend a town hall meeting in Flint, Michigan, together with his former press secretary, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, followed by a campaign rally on Wednesday in New York on Long Island.
He is scheduled to attend and speak on the Israel-American Council National Summit in Washington, DC later this week and hold a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina on Saturday.
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