View this post on the web at [link removed]

Yesterday a presumed assassin apparently tried to shoot former President Trump with an SKS-style 7.62 caliber rifle [ [link removed] ] at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Agents in the former president’s Secret Service detail, positioned one hole in advance of the presidential golfing party, spotted the would-be shooter poking a rifle through the hedges and opened fire. The suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, dropped his weapon and fled the scene; so far, there is no reporting that he fired a shot himself. An alert bystander photographed his car and contacted the Palm Beach County sheriff’s department, which coordinated with Martin County sheriffs to intercept Routh fleeing north on I-95. He surrendered without incident. Routh left behind his rifle with a scope, two backpacks and a GoPro camera, according to local authorities [ [link removed] ].
This incident, though serious, isn’t close to the near-disaster of the July 13 Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in which deceased gunman Thomas Crooks wounded Trump, killed a rally attendee [ [link removed] ] and wounded two others. But my co-author and I predicted in July that a similar attempt [ [link removed] ] on Trump might occur again, and so it has. President Biden must order increased protection for both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, if he hasn’t done so already. Even if the motives of the shooter remain unclear, we should anticipate another copycat attempt.
How differently everything transpired yesterday from the tragedy of errors in Butler two months ago. Here the Secret Service team, apparently strengthened since Butler [ [link removed] ], was well positioned at a site it knew well, and the agents quickly spotted the gunman. The agents fired upon the shooter before he could discharge his weapon, and information from a civilian witness enabled local law enforcement to collar the perpetrator. Sound security measures, alert action and clear communication with local law enforcement ensured that the threat was neutralized and the incident de-escalated. Even the press conference by Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw [ [link removed] ] demonstrated clarity and conciseness, in sharp contrast to the Secret Service director’s confused messaging after Butler.
Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe may have restored some order to the troubled agency. The Secret Service needed this success after two months of penetrating investigations [ [link removed] ] of its ineptitude at Trump’s campaign rally in Butler. Now, a solid response to a security incident with a reinforced detail [ [link removed] ] might regain some public confidence. It should be a boost to flagging agency morale, which is sorely needed during this contentious presidential campaign.
Critics contend this incident represents another failure for the overmatched Secret Service [ [link removed] ], but in fact, the agency’s security measures were more than adequate for the challenge of protecting Trump on the golf course. This type of threat is completely within the Secret Service’s wheelhouse. It probably helped that the team was likely already familiar with the layout of one of Trump’s favorite golf haunts. Anytime you can prevent a would-be assassin with a rifle from even taking a shot has to be counted as a win for the home team.
Still, a success in West Palm Beach does not mean that the Secret Service has completely righted the ship. Major reforms in the undermanned and overtaxed agency [ [link removed] ] are urgently needed. Recently, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee said the American public will be “shocked, astonished, and appalled by what we report to them,” according to the Washington Post. [ [link removed] ] Several senior Secret Service officials have resigned after an internal investigation revealed numerous failings prior to Butler.
Unlike the Butler shooter, shy student Thomas Crooks, the latest suspect—Ryan Wesley Routh, 58—wore his opinions on his sleeve. His life story suggests something of a dissolute character. He has been arrested numerous times [ [link removed] ] since 2002, usually for minor offenses but sometimes on weapons charges. Interestingly, he was also known to the media prior to this attempt. Last year, both The New York Times [ [link removed] ] and the Financial Times [ [link removed] ] interviewed this quixotic dreamer about his failed schemes to enlist as a mercenary and recruit volunteers—including Afghan refugees—to fight against Russia in Ukraine. (Perhaps his Ukraine adventure influenced his odd choice to use an SKS rifle, [ [link removed] ] a Soviet-era weapon that he may have encountered there.) Ukrainian authorities considered him too erratic to be trusted, if not outright delusional [ [link removed] ]. He claims to have been responsible for recruiting Americans to fight in Ukraine, but those claims lack credibility. It is unclear whether he has any profession or what his income source is. A former neighbor in North Carolina described Routh as “a little cuckoo.” [ [link removed] ] No evidence has appeared yet that Routh had communicated any prior threats or was on the federal agencies’ radar.
Although apparently not a quiet loner, Routh shares some of the characteristics of past presidential assassins, who were often nomadic and had a somewhat grandiose self-conception. Was Routh ideologically motivated? Perhaps, but his public opinions are all over the place [ [link removed] ]. He didn’t appear to raise any red flags on social media that might have tipped off his intent to kill—although his propensity to share facts about his life on social media, including his telephone number, enabled law enforcement to determine via his cellphone record that he was in the vicinity of the golf course for about 12 hours [ [link removed] ].
Now in custody, Routh perhaps will explain more about his motivations and how long he planned the attack. In the meantime, this incident doubtless will fuel numerous conspiracy theories about why Routh, a resident of Hawaii, was in the West Palm Beach area and knew Trump’s schedule. It is fortunate that he lacked the clarity of thinking to succeed in his deadly mission—and that the Secret Service proved itself capable of stopping his planned attack. This may not be the last time it will face a serious test this year. It is to be hoped that the agency will continue to clean house and improve so that it can cope with any future threats during this turbulent election season.

Unsubscribe [link removed]?