Two close assassination attempts on Donald Trump prove that political violence is here to stay
There’s approximately six weeks left until we finally reach the moment everyone’s been talking about for the past year: voting day for the 2024 US presidential election. So, with that in mind, welcome back to our US weekly recaps, a one-stop guide for everything you could possibly need to know as we officially enter the home stretch. This week, we’re focusing our recap on a topic many of you will be uncomfortably familiar with: politically-motivated acts of violence.
In just over two months, presidential candidate Donald Trump has survived not one, but two assassination attempts. And while Trump’s policies, demeanour, and hair are all highly offensive, watching individuals using violence and weapons to actively try and take him out is unnerving. Less so because of the target, and more so because it reinforces the fact that we are officially living in a time where people’s complete lack of conviction and trust in institutions and democracy have resulted in global violence, all in the name of politics.
On 19 September 2024, The Washington Post published an article which detailed Acting Secret Service director Ronald L. Rowe Jr.’s serious insistence that more funding be invested into the protective agency following the two assassination attempts.
For context, the Secret Service is the official protection system for sitting and former presidents and vice presidents; their families; major party nominees to those offices; visiting foreign heads of state; and others.
The director of the agency explained how the guardians of US presidents, former presidents and other top officials are desperate for more counter-snipers and investigators, upgraded armoured limousines for motorcades, and a greater supply of ballistic glass.
Moreover, Rowe emphasised how the training provided to serving officers within the agency doesn’t yet fully prepare agents for real-world attacks.
The Secret Service has faced a lot of criticism over the past few months for failing to properly prepare for and subsequently stop both the attempted attacks on 13 July in Pennsylvania and then again on 15 September in Florida.
According to NPR, Rowe’s predecessor, Kimberly Cheatle, who had been in charge of the agency when the first assassination attempt occurred, was highly criticised by lawmakers for the service’s response to the shooting, including failures to communicate with local law enforcement officials before and during Trump’s rally and its lack of a good plan to secure the roof that ultimately gave the gunman a clear line of sight to shoot at Trump.
Why is political violence on the rise?
So, funding and training issues aside, why are we now seeing far more overt acts of political violence across the world? The whole world watched in January 2021, when right-wing violent mobs stormed the US Capitol, all in the name of ‘political justice’. Just two years later, in Brazil in January 2023, rioters stormed key government sites in an attempt to take back power for their chosen leader, former President Jair Bolsonaro.
We’re seeing more and more that when certain people feel disenfranchised, let down, or wronged by their government, they won’t simply cast a different vote or engage in community activism, they will opt for the most extreme method.
Greater Good Magazine identified a few reasons as to why political violence might be on the rise—unsurprisingly Trump himself features on that very list as a possible cause…
The other social and psychological factors include: aggression, partisan identity, and disinformation. It is incredibly accurate that ideology has played a massive role in fueling anger and upset among certain groups in society. I mean just look at Tommy Robinson and the English Defence League (EDL).
The biggest problem we face with political violence, is the politicians that condone and oftentimes encourage it. Political ideology and identity is so important, and fighting for one’s rights is also imperative for a flourishing democracy. However, when getting your point across feels only possible with a gun in hand, there’s a serious issue to be addressed.
