President Joe Biden said the United States Secret Service needs further assistance after former President Donald Trump was the target of a second assassination attempt while golfing in Florida on Sunday.
“One thing I want to make clear is, the Service needs more help. And I think Congress should respond to their need,” Biden told reporters Monday.
When questioned on what the Secret Service could need, the president responded, “They may decide whether they need more personnel or not.”
Trump was playing golf in West Palm Beach when Secret Service agents noticed a man with a AK-47-style rifle on the perimeter of the course. An agent fired at the man, who then fled in a car and was later apprehended traveling from Palm Beach County into Martin County on I-95.
Biden also expressed his gratitude for his former political rival’s safety Monday.
“Thank God the president is OK,” Biden told reporters.
The suspect has been identified as a white male named Ryan Wesley Routh. Authorities found an AK-47-style rifle with a scope, two backpacks and a GoPro in the bushes near the course where the Secret Service has spotted a man.
Following the first assassination attempt on Trump in July, which was just weeks before Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, the president called Trump to check on him. That assassination attempt sparked a flurry of questions about the Secret Service’s preparation and led to the resignation of its director.
Vice President Kamala Harris shared a statement Sunday saying she was “deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today.”
“As we gather the facts, I will be clear: I condemn political violence. We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more to violence,” she added.