On Friday evening, I wrote a newsletter that expressed my wish for a “brief respite” from the madness of the prior two weeks. That short respite was shattered Saturday afternoon by a young man armed with an assault rifle who killed one and wounded two at a campaign rally for Donald Trump. The former president suffered an injury to his ear. The FBI says the shooting was an attempted assassination.
President Biden immediately condemned the violence, expressed concern for the well-being of Trump, and spoke to Trump on Saturday evening.
In response to reader requests, I am writing to open the Comment section to subscribers so that readers can share their views and feelings with members of this community.
I will refrain from further comments because, as of Saturday evening, so little is known about the nature and cause of the incident.
Strong emotions are understandable, but please refrain from condoning, endorsing, rationalizing the violence, or blaming the victims. Our political system cannot function if violence is normalized. We must do everything we can to prevent further violence.
The question of “How will this affect the election?” is understandable but also the least important question we can ask. Better questions are “What can we do to prevent gun violence?”, “Why is gun violence routine and accepted in America but not in other leading nations?”, “What will it take to finally rouse Congress to ban assault rifles?”, and “What groups can we support to promote gun safety legislation?”
Please be respectful. Many readers look to the Comment section for support, guidance, validation, and reassurance. Please keep that in mind as you comment on the shooting. If you can, be a leader in this newsletter community by offering hope and solutions, not rage and blame.
Sadly, every shooting offers an opportunity to take the steps necessary to end the scourge of gun violence in America. Let’s take this opportunity to do the right thing to protect our children, our families, and our democracy.
I will be in touch on Sunday evening.
The bottom line hasn't changed one iota: there is the choice in November between democracy and autocracy. Let's keep the eyes on the ball and hope, that the goalposts haven't been moved.
Will the apparent attempt on Trump’s life, with an assault rifle, cause him or his supporters to re-consider their position on allowing people to have such weapons? Somehow, I doubt it. Further thought: This incident presents Democrats with a valuable opportunity to make gun control a central issue in the campaign. Large majorities of Americans believe that we need more gun control; the fecklessness and hypocrisy of Trump and his ilk in response to the shooting should be used against them. (And, cynically, doing that will reduce the sympathy generated by the incident.)