The 2024 United States presidential election is set to take place on November 5, 2024. However, political observers worldwide are following the events unfolding in that nation with greater interest after a seminal moment in the context of the upcoming elections: the assassination attempt on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump during a campaign speech in Pennsylvania. Video clips have captured those defining moments after a bullet pierced Trump’s upper right ear. They show Trump with blood on his face raising his fist and saying ‘fight’ thrice while Secret Service agents are escorting him away from the stage. These clips and photos with Trump’s raised fist and the American flag in the background won’t be erased from the nation’s memory soon. Perhaps, ever.
Will the unfortunate incident benefit Trump in political terms? It certainly will, although many Trump haters will point out that much else will happen between now and November, which is four months away. The other question they will inevitably raise is: why did Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old home aide, attempt to assassinate Trump by using an AR-style 556 rifle that was reportedly his father’s? Crooks is dead. The limited information about the man with no apparent motive is that he was a registered Republican who, ironically, donated $15 to ActBlue, the Democratic-allied organisation.
A good student during his school days, it has been reported that he was a loner who was regularly bullied back then. He was noticed for his preference for hunting outfits in school, and he chose to wear a Demolition Ranch T-shirt on the day of the attempt. Demolition Ranch is a YouTube channel for gun lovers with over 11 million subscribers. As investigations to get to the bottom of the matter continue, it is sufficiently obvious that establishing his motive will be nowhere near as easy as, say, doing the same in the case of John Hinckley Jr., who attempted to assassinate former President Ronald Reagan in 1981 because he wanted to impress actress Jodie Foster! (Incidentally, Hinckley Jr., who was unconditionally released in 2022, plays the guitar and sings songs on his YouTube channel. Such bizarre things can only happen in the USA).
It does seem that Crooks was a politically confused man, who felt he was out of place in society. He reportedly wanted to join the school rifle team but failed. However, his choice of a Demolition Ranch T-shirt indicates his interest in firearms. Is it possible that Crooks tried to end Trump’s life after listening to the shrill cries of Trump’s hostile Democrat critics, both famous and not famous, who have been baying for his blood? Without a shade of doubt, it certainly is.
US Senator James David Vance of Ohio, nominated as Trump’s running mate, stated in his X post, “Today (the day of the attempt) 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.” This convincing line of thought has strengthened Trump’s case for sure.
The last time a similar incident occurred was 112 years ago, when insane tavern owner John Schrank, who claimed to have visions asking him to assassinate Theodore Roosevelt, shot the latter in the middle of a campaign speech at point-blank range. Although the bullet lodged in Roosevelt’s chest, he went on to finish his speech, which Trump did not. However, references to the Roosevelt episode in the context of the assassination attempt on Trump on social media aren’t surprising.
Also, undervaluing the importance of video clips and photographs, which captured those moments and have taken up residence in people’s minds, is outright fatuous. They will remind the Americans of Trump’s mental toughness, a quality everybody appreciates in a true leader, which has enhanced his chances of getting the top job considerably.
Trump’s agile response makes him an appealing option compared to Joe Biden, the presumptive Democrat nominee, who has been under scrutiny because of his mental and physical health. Biden’s gaffes have evoked reactions ranging from full-throated laughter to deep anxiety. His performance in the presidential debate was plain pathetic. Although the man has exhibited fake bravado, famously saying in an interview that he would quit the race only if Lord Almighty asked him to do it, even his devoted fans should agree that the Biden of the past is not the Biden of today. In other words, concerns about his ability to perform in the top job for four more years must not be dismissed as ageism.
Biden has been guilty of making a statement during a call, whose significance has heightened after the assassination attempt: “We’re done talking about the debate. It’s time to put Trump in the bull’s-eye.” His admission that using the expression “time to put Trump in the bull’s-eye” is a “mistake” in yet another interview – followed by his predictable criticism of Trump – does not change the fact that those words have hit him hard. The already-beleaguered man did not need more trouble on his table. But, it is there, and staring at him.
After the assassination attempt, there is more optimism in Trump’s camp and more worries for Biden’s supporters. Those who believe that a bullet that pierced Trump’s ear has decided the outcome of the presidential election have probably hit the bull’s-eye.
The writer, a journalist for three decades, writes on literature and pop culture. Among his books are ‘MSD: The Man, The Leader’, the bestselling biography of former Indian captain MS Dhoni, and the ‘Hall of Fame’ series of film star biographies. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.