Three hours before the would-be assassin was found hiding in the bushes on a West Palm Beach golf course, Donald Trump posted in all caps to his completely unprofitable social network, Truth Social, that “I Hate Taylor Swift.” Around the same time, his running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, was making the rounds on Sunday shows proudly acknowledging that he and Trump had knowingly spread the racist lie that Haitian immigrants eat pets, and the even bigger lie that immigrants pose an existential threat to the country itself.
It was a great day for the Trump campaign: a feud with the country’s most popular pop star, vile lies told to vulnerable people, and yet another assassination attempt. But the reaction of the former president and his allies to the golf course fracas also felt strangely familiar, almost routine. There were no calls for “unity” or empty promises to ease tensions; instead, they were quick to blame their political opponents.
In a speech on Monday, Vance said the assassination attempt on Trump was “pretty strong evidence that if the left doesn’t stop speaking out, somebody’s going to get hurt.” He also said in his speech that the suspect, Ryan Routh, who was arrested, was inspired by the Harris campaign’s claims that Trump is a threat to democracy. Trump, meanwhile, said his opponent’s inflammatory rhetoric puts him at risk, saying, “These are people who want to destroy this country.”
“It’s called the enemy from within,” Trump continued. “They are the real threat.” As if that wasn’t subtle enough, the Trump campaign then released a long list of people it accused, without evidence, of being inspired by Rouse, including Harris and her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Adam Schiff, and even Walz’s wife, Gwen.
It would be foolish to blame politicians for either assassination attempt — both Routh and the late Pennsylvania shooter, Thomas Crooks, were mentally troubled and politically disturbed — but it’s important to acknowledge a simple and obvious truth: No one in this country has done more to stomp on division, sow chaos, and, yes, incite violence over the past decade than Trump. It was only a matter of time before it came back to bite him.
