The attempted assassination of former President Trump at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday raised questions about security protocols and how a gunman was able to open fire so close to the presumptive Republican nominee.
The shooting, which left one bystander dead and Trump wounded and at least two others, stunned officials from both political parties, who have seen firsthand the level of precision, care and detail that the U.S. Secret Service puts into protecting its subordinates. U.S. presidents and former presidents are among the most protected politicians in the world, with multiple layers of security, some visible to the public and others covert.
Democrat Bill Burton saw the complex level of protection while accompanying then-Senator Barack Obama during his 2008 campaign and later as a member of his White House administration.
“In the political world, people often ignore the humanity of the other side, but ultimately, former President Trump almost lost his life today,” Burton said after watching the story play out live on television monitors during a stopover at JFK Airport. “And, regardless of what the next few months and years hold, I don’t think any of us want to live in a country where that’s a reality for our leaders.”
At campaign rallies and official White House events, the level of security for spectators is higher than at an airport checkpoint. Items as innocuous as umbrellas are often confiscated. For journalists and others who are in direct contact with the president or a leading candidate, security is even more extensive, with background checks and trained dogs sniffing out bags and equipment.
In addition to these publicly visible efforts, agents are often on rooftops with long guns when a protectee appears in public. Motorcades are guarded by federal, state and local law enforcement officers. Buildings and event sites are screened and secured in advance, and information about potential threats is investigated.
The assassination attempt came on the eve of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, which begins Monday, with Trump expected to accept his party's nomination on Thursday.
Security at such events is extremely tight and will likely become even tighter after what happened on Saturday.
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, said he and his staff are communicating with agencies coordinating security for the event.
“We cannot be a country that accepts political violence of any kind — that is not who we are as Americans,” Evers said on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
U.S. Secret Service agents respond as Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded on stage by U.S. Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa.
(Evan Vucci/Associated Press)
On Saturday, as Trump addressed supporters, gunshots rang out. The former president put his hand to the side of his face and crouched down as Secret Service agents quickly surrounded him and led him away, blood dripping near his right ear.
One spectator was killed and two others were seriously injured. The shooter, who was on a rooftop outside the event perimeter, was shot dead by Secret Service agents, according to the Associated Press and other media outlets.
“Frankly, I don’t know how he would have gotten to where he was, but he was off the property,” Butler County District Attorney Richard A. Goldinger told CNN. “And I think it’s something we’ll have to figure out how he got there.”
“We haven’t seen anything like this since the Reagan era,” he added. “It’s mind-boggling. Maybe we’re a little bit blasé about it, thinking this wouldn’t happen to a president or a former president. But it’s crazy. Unfortunately, it may just be the current political climate.”
The last publicly known assassination attempt on a president or former president occurred in 1981, when Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously wounded as he left a hotel in Washington, DC.
Police snipers return fire after shots were fired as Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump spoke at a campaign event in Butler, Pa., Saturday, July 13, 2024.
(Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press)
An adviser to 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said the danger grows exponentially at outdoor events, which he described as “the most difficult.”
“There are many ways to introduce a weapon. It could have been thrown over a fence, dug into the ground and planted beforehand. Who knows?” said the aide, who asked not to be identified so he could speak frankly about the situation.
Burton said that while the Secret Service offers “the best protection in the world … any law enforcement official will tell you that it is nearly impossible to stop a committed lone wolf who is willing to die for his cause.”
Obama received Secret Service protection earlier than any presidential candidate in history because of the level of threats against him.
“I was absolutely shocked and immediately saddened,” Burton said of Saturday's violence.
The Secret Service was tasked with protecting presidents in 1902, following the assassination of President William McKinley the previous year. Its duties — protecting the nation's leaders and their families — have expanded over the years, most notably following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is helped off the stage at a campaign event in Butler, Pa., Saturday, July 13, 2024.
(Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press)
