The alleged gunman, accused of targeting former President Trump while he played golf in Florida on Sunday, had previously declared on social media that "Democracy is on the ballot" this year and "we cannot lose," echoing anti-Trump sentiments similar to those expressed by President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Law enforcement identified the suspect as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh. Routh, who has an extensive criminal history in North Carolina, often posted about politics and has regularly donated to Democratic candidates and causes since 2019. In an April 22 post on X, Routh criticized Trump, saying, "Democracy is on the ballot, and we cannot afford to lose," according to reports.
Trump Basher Democrat Supporter
On the same day, when Biden was still running for reelection, Routh urged the 81-year-old president to focus his campaign on preserving "America's democracy and freedom."
He also accused Trump of wanting to "make Americans slaves under a master." "DEMOCRACY is on the ballot and we cannot lose," he wrote, a similar slogan commonly used by President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
"We cannot afford to fail," Routh continued. "The world is counting on us to show the way."
This rhetoric mirrors the language Kamala Harris continues to use during her campaign. On August 29, she said at a rally in Savannah, Georgia, "We are fighting for our democracy."
Earlier, on July 31, at an event in Houston, Harris remarked that "our fundamental freedoms are on the ballot and so is our democracy," echoing the same message she delivered at a sorority event that same day.
Tom Fitton, president of the conservative legal organization Judicial Watch, told The Post, "It is no coincidence that Routh repeated Kamala's and Joe's extremist rhetoric against Trump. At this point it is inexcusable incitement."
After the assassination attempt on Trump in July, where the GOP nominee was injured in the ear, he tweeted at Biden, urging him to visit the victims of the Pennsylvania rally where Thomas Matthew Crooks had fired shots and to attend the funeral of the 50-year-old volunteer firefighter who was killed.
"You should visit the victims in the hospital of the trump rally victims and attend the funeral of the fireman that died; Trump certainly never would. SHOW THE WORLD WHAT REAL LEADERS DO," he posted on July 16.
In June 2020, he tweeted at Trump, expressing that although he had supported the Republican candidate in 2016, he was ultimately disappointed with his time in office.
"I and the world hoped that president Trump would be different and better than the candidate, but we all were greatly disappointment and it seems you are getting worse and devolving; are you retarded; I will be glad when you gone," he wrote.
Ryan Routh Was Democrat Donor
Routh has donated to Democratic candidates and liberal causes since 2019. From September 2019 to March 2020, he contributed over $140 through the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) records.
The records did not specify his employer.
His LinkedIn profile indicates that he attended North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and moved to Hawaii around 2018.
On LinkedIn, Routh is described as "mechanically inclined" with a passion for "ideas, invention, and creative projects with an artistic touch."
Secret Service agents spotted Routh near Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach carrying a Soviet-style SKS assault rifle. The agents fired at him, but he managed to escape. Routh was subsequently arrested by local police on I-95.
His social media account featured a mix of incoherent tweets and responses, while also showing staunch support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia and for Taiwan in its fight against China.
In one reply to X's owner, Elon Musk, he even suggested the idea of buying a rocket from the billionaire.
"I would like to buy a rocket from you. I wish to load it with a warhead for Putin's Black Sea mansion bunker to end him. Can you give me a price please. It can be old and used as not returning," Routh wrote.
He wrote on X that he tried to "sell" the idea of having former Afghan soldiers join the fight for Ukraine against Russia but was turned down multiple times before abandoning the idea after six months.
He also said that he visited Kyiv and expressed his willingness to join the frontlines if given the opportunity.
In a 2022 interview with Newsweek Romania, Routh, dressed in an American flag-themed shirt, discussed his efforts to recruit others to fight in Kyiv.
Routh, a registered Democrat, had a 2002 conviction for possessing a weapon of mass destruction, according to records from the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction, though specifics about the case are unavailable.
