ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTTrump Assassination Attempt Poses New Test for U.S. Democracy
After a shooting that injured former President Donald Trump and killed a spectator at a campaign rally, leaders of both parties must unite behind efforts to calm and stabilize the political climate.
The shooting at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania this week confirmed the concerns you expressed in a recent CFR paper about political violence. As details still emerge, what are the most important next steps for authorities?
Authorities will need to significantly raise their guard against the imminent threats of more violence. President Joe Biden’s announcement of improved security measures around Trump and of reviewed protocols for the Republican convention are welcome first steps. Coordination needs to be improved to ensure gaps in defenses are plugged, and security perimeters will likely broaden after this breach. But most critically, politicians of both major political parties need to commit to more productive and uniting political rhetoric, rather than language that continues to divide Americans.
The attack continues an ongoing trend of political extremists seeking to silence their political rivals through violence, rather than the ballot box. At this moment, little is known about the 20-year-old perpetrator, beyond his name, hometown, and a voting form listing his registration as Republican. His motive, or how he evaded the security cordon, are unknown.
It is worth noting that this was not the first move toward political violence to strike this U.S. election cycle. For instance, in May, law enforcement apprehended a white supremacist who was traveling to Atlanta to commit a mass shooting, hoping to start a race war before the election. That would-be terrorist would have joined a long line of violent far-right extremists to target minority communities in the United States over the past several years. The political temperature is steadily rising, and as Graham Allison and Michael J. Morell argued in Foreign Affairs in June, “The Terrorism Warning Lights Are Blinking Red Again.” This is unlikely to be the end of the violence between now and the November elections, with the Republican convention in Milwaukee this week the next major focus of concern.
Recent polling conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute suggests that almost a quarter of Americans support the statement that “American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save the country,” including 33 percent of Republicans and 13 percent of Democrats.
