Independent investigation into Trump assassination attempt will be conducted, DHS says
WASHINGTON - An independent review of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump will be launched, officials announced Monday.
Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas announced the review would be launched "in days" at a briefing Monday afternoon.
"We are, indeed, in the process of selecting who will lead the independent review. The findings indeed will be made public," he said. "It is very important that we achieve transparency so that the American people have confidence in the work of the review and its findings and recommendations. And we need to move with swiftness and urgency, because this is a security imperative."
The announcement comes two days after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania where a campaign rally for former President Trump killed one spectator and injured others, including Trump.
Niranjan Humagain was raised in Nepal and moved to the United States when he was 25. Visiting Washington, D.C. from Atlanta this week, he told FOX 5 he did not think something like this would happen in the U.S.
"That doesn’t happen in the U.S. That’s what I think," Humagain said. "I mean, you hear about this happening in other countries. But generally, the U.S. being U.S., right? It’s a democratic country, free speech, safety and security, all things in place. People, I don’t know…my reaction was it doesn’t happen in the U.S. but it happened, and it was unfortunate."
Prior to Saturday’s attempted assassination, there have been multiple instances of political violence targeting U.S. presidents, former presidents, and other party candidates. Motives have varied, explained Peter Loge.
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Loge is the director of George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs.
"John Hinkley was trying to impress Jodie Foster, a young star," he said, referring to the 1981 attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan. "It is really easy to assert motive. When things happen, we want to know why. We want a reason, "well, this must have happened because…" we want to jump in and give reason."
Years prior, President Gerald Ford faced two assassination attempts within weeks in 1975. He was not hurt in either incident.
"I think the story is how come violent political rhetoric is on the rise in the US? How come political violence is becoming normalized? You have Congressman Steve Scalise who was shot at baseball practice, of all things. Gabby Giffords was while talking to her constituents. Earlier this year, I was interviewing the FDA commissioner and he casually mentioned, death threats are a day-a-day part of the job," Loge said.
He warns that drawing conclusions on motive without facts can be problematic.
"We do this any time. We hit unexpected traffic jam. "Well, it’s because". That’s really dangerous. I applaud those in the media who continue to say, we don’t the motives. It could have been partisan-motivated. It could have been someone wanting attention. It could be a deeply troubled young man. We don’t know," he said. "The broader story is how do we pundits, professors, the press, the politicians…do a better job of making political rhetoric less awful and less violent? How do we get back to a point where our campaigns are passionate, they’re partisan. The stakes are high, we’re fighting fiercely. But we’re doing so in a way that’s strengthening our political discourse, rather than demonizing our opponents."
As of Monday, the motive behind the shooting remains unknown. According to an updated statement released by the FBI on Monday, the agency said the investigation is still in the early stages.
The FBI announced Monday that technical specialists have gained access to the phone of the suspected shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks. The search of his home and car are also completed, along with nearly 100 interviews of law enforcement personnel, event attendees, and witnesses.