Trump, long comfortable with political violence, becomes another victim

It is an article of faith that political violence has no place in America — or in any civilized country. As Margaret Thatcher once said, “You never, never, never allow the bullet and the bomb to oust the express view of the people by ballot.”

Yet, for unexplained reasons, such violence has dogged our history for centuries. The Black Panther leader H. Rap Brown said that violence “is as American as cherry pie.”

Political violence ended Abraham Lincoln’s life at the end of our Civil War. In 1963, when it ended the promise of John F. Kennedy and Camelot. It silenced the stirring voice of Martin Luther King, and the potential of Robert F. Kennedy.

It was with us at the time of Ronald Reagan, who joked to his surgeons after being shot, “If I had this much attention in Hollywood, I’d have stayed there.” It was with us on Jan. 6, 2021, when Trump-inspired rioters stormed the Capitol and the president did nothing about it for three hours as he watched it unfold on television and schemed to overstay his term in office.

It was with us when Paul Pelosi, husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, was assaulted and beaten with a hammer in their San Francisco home two years ago. 

Trump, the MAGA candidate for president, used that incident as an occasion for mockery: “What the hell was going on with her husband? Let’s not ask. … She’s got a wall around her house. Obviously in that case, it didn’t work very well, did it?”

Trump, while in office, considered political violence an option. According to former Attorney General Bill Barr, Trump would muse about the idea of executing individuals who disagreed with him. In 2020, Trump suggested shooting George Floyd protesters in Washington, as noted by his own Defense Secretary, Mark Esper.

At a rally in Butler, Pa. on Saturday, violence erupted again with the sniper attack on Donald Trump. I condemn it, as must all good citizens. It occurred two days before the Republican National Convention.

This time, the security wall that was supposed to protect Trump also “didn’t work very well.” The sniper somehow penetrated the barrier that was supposed to be protecting the former president. He was poised on a roof just 400 feet from Trump, armed with an AR-style 556 rifle, the same type of assault weapon used in mass shootings at Las Vegas, Orlando, Sutherland Springs, Sandy Hook and Uvalde. He was seen at the ready by many in the crowd before he pulled the trigger. Yet not one MAGA lawmaker has called for a ban on such assault weapons.

The alleged shooter was identified as Thomas Crooks, a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man said to be a registered Republican. His motives were unclear. Crooks was killed at the scene, as was a spectator, a former firefighter who shielded his family from the hail of bullets. Two other members of the audience were said to be in critical condition.

President Biden spoke after receiving a briefing on the shooting at the rally. Biden expressed his condolences for the murdered victim, and urged Americans not to make assumptions about the shooter’s motive. He called for “unity.” “It’s sick. It’s sick,” the president said, “It’s one of the reasons we have to unite this country….We cannot condone this.”

The shot was heard round the world. Modi of India, Netanyahu of Israel and Kishida of Japan — representing countries which have had their own share of political assassinations — were only some of the world leaders joining Biden to call for a stand against violence that “challenges democracy.”

Some Republican lawmakers were not as magnanimous. Amid overwhelming bipartisan condemnation of the attack, some Republicans were quick to point fingers at Democrats and liberals. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) cast some of the blame for the shooting on Biden and that old MAGA piñata, the media. Johnson said that Biden should be “called out” for political attacks on Trump that have contributed to what he described as a “heated political environment.”

Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) posted on social media “Joe Biden sent the orders,” minutes after the shooting. There is, of course, no evidence to support this accusation.

Trump has long dabbled in political violence. He exhorted his followers in his speech on the Mall on Jan. 6, when he said, “We fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.” He dog-whistled for it in a 2020 debate with Biden, when he told the far-right extremist Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by.”

Immediately after the shooting, Trump raised his hand to the faithful and yelled, “Fight!” Later, he posted on his social media site “We will FEAR NOT” adding “It was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening.”

What has become of America? A British journalist texted me: “Keep your head down…sounds grim in the land of the free.” Grim, indeed! For a leader to condemn political violence is to put country first, to think beyond oneself. Not too much to ask.

Trump has ironically expressed contempt for these ideals, and he continues to do it in the face of the Butler tragedy.

James D. Zirin, author and legal analyst, is a former federal prosecutor in New York’s Southern District. He is also the host of the public television talk show and podcast Conversations with Jim Zirin.