President Joe Biden is under fire for calling former President Donald Trump a “genuine threat to this nation” two weeks before an assassination attempt was made on him at a campaign rally.
“Donald Trump is a genuine threat to this nation. He’s a threat to our freedom. He’s a threat to our democracy. He’s literally a threat to everything America stands for,” Biden wrote in a June 28 X post:
Donald Trump is a genuine threat to this nation.
He’s a threat to our freedom. He’s a threat to our democracy. He’s literally a threat to everything America stands for.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 28, 2024
Since a gunman, later identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, killed one bystander and critically wounded two others while trying to take out Trump, Biden’s harsh characterization of the former president has been criticized as inflammatory.
Jim DeMint, chairman of the Conservative Partnership Institute, highlighted the post on Sunday morning with the simple caption, “Two weeks ago”:
Two weeks ago. pic.twitter.com/9p0Xt0QipQ
— Jim DeMint (@JimDeMint) July 14, 2024
Just minutes before Trump’s ear was grazed by one of Crooks’ bullets on Saturday evening, Biden likened him to “a dictator” on his Facebook page:
Americans want a president, not a dictator.
Posted by Joe Biden on Saturday, July 13, 2024
That post was published at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, just moments before Crooks tried to assassinate Trump during his campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, at around 6:10 p.m.
Crooks, of Bethel, also had explosive devices in his car parked near the event, sources told the Wall Street Journal.
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) attributed the attempt on Trump’s life to him being characterized as a an “authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs”:
Today is not just some isolated incident.
The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs.
That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) July 14, 2024
“Today is not just some isolated incident,” the Republican wrote on X. “The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led to directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”
The U.S. Secret Service confirmed that agents “neutralized” Crooks and that he is now “deceased.”
Here is the latest information from our investigation. We are grateful to the Secret Service team and our law enforcement partners for their swift action. Our thoughts go out to the families affected by this tragedy. pic.twitter.com/E8FazqtUVZ
— Anthony Guglielmi (@SecretSvcSpox) July 14, 2024
Trump has since thanked the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies “for their rapid response” in a Truth Social post.
“I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” the former president wrote. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.”
He added: “GOD BLESS AMERICA!”
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