Former President Donald Trump came a half-inch from being assassinated on Saturday. Thank goodness he’s alive.
Let’s reflect for a moment on what would have happened to our country had Mr. Trump not turned his head slightly just before the bullet hit his right ear.
Potentially serious violence and unrest? Even if the sorrow, despair, and anger millions would feel at having their presidential candidate murdered in cold blood were to be completely peacefully received, what is the takeaway?
It is destructive. We are less free if political power is dictated by the barrel of a gun. And it is the government’s job to prevent that from happening.
Political talking heads are calling for a different tone and I’m all for that, so far as it goes. But it is a vague concept that no one agrees upon. And the answer certainly isn’t less freedom of speech.
“You know the political rhetoric in this country has gotten very heated,” President Biden told the nation last night. “It’s time to cool it down.”
I think, instead, it is time for Mr. Biden to turn up the heat: on the Secret Service.
This weekend’s deadly* shooting represents an epic failure. To allow a would-be assassin to climb onto the roof of a building 140 yards away, a rifle in hand and in line of sight of a former president giving a speech, demonstrates an incredible level of incompetence.
Heads must roll at Secret Service. (Figuratively.) A new and beefed-up detail should be protecting Trump. And it is past time for RFK, Jr., to be granted Secret Service protection as well.
I don’t say this often but … spend the money!
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
* Corey Comperatore, a father sheltering his family with his body, was struck by a bullet and killed. Two others were seriously injured by the gunfire. Also, the shooter was killed by Secret Service snipers.
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When multiple pundits and spokesmodels at the commanding heights of culture declare that Trump is Hitler, a few fools are going to try to do to him what should have been done to the actual Hitler.
Simple albeit inexcusable blundering seems to explain most of the failure in this instance by the Secret Service and police. The Secret Service and local police divided responsibilities, but the Secret Service did not make sure that it knew just what the local police were doing, and so did not know that the killer was not an officer until he began firing.
However, apparently one officer pulled an Uvalde, retreating when he became aware that an attack was about to begin. That retreat was not simple blundering.
Nor do I think that the Administration’s withholding of protection for RFKjr, and before that for Justice Kavanaugh has been simple blundering. Rather, the Administration has seemed to be gambling that its opponents could be neutralized by fear if not by physical injury.
Political power is ALWAYS dictated by the barrel of a gun.
Politicians only get upset about that when the people holding the guns don’t work for those politicians.
If the head of the Secret Service was more focused on competency and less on DEI, would a 20 year old been able to take a rifle to the closest overwatch spot and have 3 – 4 minutes snapping off AR15 rounds at President Trump?
That’s sure odd.
Hard to believe that the Secret Service unintentionally left that spot unsecured. Suggests that they mebbe just attended the counter-terrorist classes but then didn’t get graded.
“Loner” gunman label means that no one investigates deeply to find if anyone else is behind this. The shooter was reportedly also in a Blackrock commercial in 2 spots. (Posted on X)
If you were a mult-billion dollar company and there was a political candidate that was a financial threat to your new world order and you desired to take him out, would you select a loner, train him, then make sure he had 3 – 4 minutes in an ideal sniper overwatch site to take out that threat?
Also making sure to try to eliminate most media and electronic record that ties him to you?
Trump called the President, “Sleepy Joe”.
That hostility and vitriol has to stop.
You see what he did there?
He used a label that fools people into thinking he’s not fomenting hatred.
By emphasizing real characteristics that actually negatively affect the President’s job performance.
How insidious.
Was it incompetence?
I keep thinking about all of the “errors” in November 1963.