No matter where one stands on the political spectrum, it is unequivocal that political violence – any form of unwarranted violence – should have no place in any democratic system. In every country needless violence should be repudiated, and, if we want our democracies to endure the race to an election, it should be fought with ballots, not bullets.
July 13, 2024, proved to be an extremely scary day for America, and truly, for the rest of the world that has their eyes on the country’s contentious presidential race leading up to November. Former President Donald Trump faced an attempt on his life, with the gunman’s bullet having landed on the upper part of his ear, piercing the skin, but missing his head by an inch.
The question on many people’s minds is: How could this have happened? The police and Secret Services were present, and especially the latter should be more than ready to act swiftly at all times. It would stand to reason that they were caught completely by surprise. However, according to one Trump supporter who was at the rally, Secret Services and police had been warned, even if it was little in advance.
Were Secret Services and police aware of the shooter’s presence?
BBC was one of the news networks on the ground and covered the incident extensively, including interviewing a number of the Pennsylvania rally spectators. One of them, in particular, had more knowledge to impart than the rest, having become aware of the shooter before he even opened fire.
According to this eyewitness, not only were police warned by him and the people, who also saw the gunman crawl on the roof, but Secret Services also seemed to notice the supporters signaling. It was sufficiently in advance that this gentleman couldn’t help but wonder why they didn’t act swiftly and remove Trump off the podium. The supporter speculated that security received 3 to 4 minutes of warning before the shooting. Although the eyewitness admitted that the Secret Services likely could not see the gunman from their angle, he nevertheless questioned why no one had been stationed on that roof, considering that the perimeter was not overwhelmingly large.
On CNN, after watching President Joe Biden address the Republican nominee’s assassination attempt and rightfully condemn the act of violence, it was mentioned how the rhetoric that has been used to refer to the presidential contestants on either side has contributed to this horrific event. Unfortunately, in many modern democracies, with America being a prime example, people are allowing emotions of political division to drive them further into toxic polarization. As philosopher Martha Nussbaum wrote in The Monarchy of Fear (2018): “There’s a lot of fear around in the US today, and this fear is often mingled with anger, blame, and envy. Fear all too often blocks rational deliberation, poisons hope, and impedes constructive cooperation for a better future.”
This shocking event will do nothing to quench the fear that has spread throughout the country and inflamed political rhetoric. Hopefully, there will be no more scares of this kind as they are not what a democracy is supposed to be about. We would expect that security at future rallies and political events will be tighter, more prepared, and not allow the same oversights to take place.
The Former president was injured, along with two other people in the audience. Unfortunately, one supporter was hit by a bullet that missed Trump and unfortunately became one of the two casualties of the incident, including the gunman who was neutralized on site.
