Secret Service under pressure after second apparent Trump assassination attempt

Speaker Mike Johnson said today the House will “change the emphasis” of its task force already investigating the July assassination attempt against Trump to include the Sunday incident at Trump’s golf course.

“We have a task force that was already investigating the Butler, Pennsylvania, lapses in security,” Johnson said during a fireside chat with Larry Kudlow at the America First Policy Institute. “We’re going to change the emphasis of that to have both events investigated.”

The task force was created by a vote in the House on July 24, with the specific directive to investigate “the attempted assassination of Donald J. Trump on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania.”

The House would need to vote on whether to expand the task force's scope.

Johnson also said Congress will “do what’s necessary” to help the Secret Service.

“The Secret Service, as you’ve seen reported, suggests that they have a manpower shortage. And look, it’s about allocation of resources,” he said.

“I’m not so sure it’s a funding issue, but Congress will be willing to do what’s necessary.”

Former President Donald Trump met today with Martin County Sheriff's Office deputies who took Ryan Routh into custody.

Routh was arrested in connection with the apparent assassination attempt after deputies pulled him over on a traffic stop on Interstate 95, according to Trump spokesperson Margo Martin.

In a video shared by Martin on X, Trump could be seen walking into a room to greet the deputies.

"That's good-looking human beings," he said before shaking hands with all the deputies.

"I'm still here," Trump said.

A group of eight Senate Republicans led by Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., sent a letter today to the acting director of the Secret Service, demanding increased security for former President Donald Trump.

The senators also called on Ronald Rowe to designate Trump as a protectee with the same level of security as a sitting president and reiterated their request for a briefing on the recent apparent assassination attempt.

They said the steps would allow Secret Service agents to secure a broader perimeter around Trump, among other advantages.

"These measures would better safeguard President Trump’s life and help ease concerns that there will be additional attempts made," the senators wrote.

With a national debate going on this election season over Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, it's interesting to note that the prosecutor in the case against suspect Ryan Routh is the first Haitian-born American lawyer to serve as U.S. attorney.

Markenzy LaPointe leads an office of nearly 500 attorneys and support staff who investigate and prosecute federal crimes in South Florida, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

He emigrated from Haiti to the U.S. as a teenager, lived in Miami’s Liberty City neighborhood and graduated from Edison High School, the office said on its website.

Springfield was recently thrust into the national spotlight by baseless rumors that Haitian residents were eating wildlife and pets, leading to tension, bomb threats and anger aimed at Haitian immigrants.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said the entire Justice Department, including the FBI, is investigating the apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on Sunday.

"We are grateful that he is safe," Garland said today at an event to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office). "The entire Justice Department, including in particular the FBI, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the National Security Division, are all coordinating closely with our local, state, law enforcement partners on the ground."

Garland said the Justice Department will "work together to tirelessly determine accountability in this matter."

"We will spare no resource in this investigation," Garland said.

The man charged after what authorities said appeared to be an attempt to assassinate Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach golf course was a former Trump supporter who has had several run-ins with the law over the past two decades.

Ryan Routh, 58, is believed to have a long criminal and civil court history. In 2002, a man by the same name who was 36 at the time was convicted for possessing a machine gun. Records also show convictions for carrying a concealed weapon, possession of stolen property and hit-and-run. In those cases, which included misdemeanor convictions for violations such as resisting an officer and driving on a suspended license, the defendant received a suspended sentence and parole or probation.

Court records show more than 100 criminal counts have been filed against Ryan Routh in North Carolina, most in Guilford County, which underlies Greensboro. The exact outcome of each case was not immediately clear. There is no record of time spent in state prison related to those cases in the early 2000s.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced today that he is signing an executive order to assign the apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump to the Office of Statewide Prosecution.

"The suspect, Ryan Routh, is believed to have committed state law violations across multiple judicial circuits in the state — Palm Beach Judicial Circuit, the judicial circuit, including Martin County, as well as perhaps the judicial circuit represented by Broward County," DeSantis said during a news briefing. "Also, the state of Florida has jurisdiction over the most serious straightforward offense, which is attempted murder."

The investigation will be done under the supervision of state Attorney General Ashley Moody, according to DeSantis.

Ryan Routh is currently being held at Miami Federal Detention Center, according to the Bureau of Prisons.

Miami FDC is about 70 miles south of Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach.

Routh was arraigned Monday at the Paul G. Rogers Federal Court House in West Palm Beach on charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

Former President Donald Trump is back on the campaign trail today, two days after shots were fired at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Trump is scheduled to hold a town hall today at 7 p.m. that will be moderated by Sarah Huckabee Sanders in Flint, Michigan. He's also expected to be on "The Sean Hannity Show," which will air at 9 p.m. ET.

The Secret Service’s protective responsibility has grown this campaign season, and now more than 40 people have security details, an agency official said last night.

The people being protected include the president, the vice president and their families; former presidents and first ladies; running mates and their families; and other people deemed to qualify based on threat levels, the official said.

Since July 13, the day a man with a rifle tried to assassinate Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, revised assessments have been made for all those under protection, the official said.

President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are forcefully condemning political violence and calling on Americans to lower the temperature in the wake of the apparent second assassination attempt on Donald Trump on Sunday. NBC’s Peter Alexander reports for "TODAY."

A golfing partner of Donald Trump has described the dramatic moment he heard gunshots and saw Secret Service agents dive on top of the former president during the apparent assassination attempt at his Florida golf course Sunday.

Businessman Steve Witkoff, a longtime Trump friend and political donor, told NBC's "TODAY" show on Tuesday that he knew immediately that a series of loud “pops” was gunfire, and praised the Secret Service for their quick response in getting Trump off the golf course in under 20 seconds.

Former President Donald Trump spoke out about the attempted assassination attempt on him while he was at his West Palm Beach golf club during an interview on X Spaces. Trump described the suspect as a “dangerous person” and praised the Secret Service for their protection.