David Frum, a prominent “Never Trump” pundit and former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, claimed that former President Donald Trump and his running mate Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) “want to present themselves as near-victims of violence” following the second assassination attempt against Trump that transpired on Sunday.
“Trump and his running mate have spent the past week successfully inciting violence in Springfield, Ohio. Today they want to present themselves as near-victims of violence — in this case, of violence completely unrelated to themselves and at a very safe distance from themselves,” Frum wrote in a Sunday X post.
Frum’s comments came after Trump’s campaign announced the 45th president was safe “following gunshots in his vicinity.” The FBI now says it is investigating an apparent second assassination attempt against Trump.
“Shortly after a leftist freak tried to assassinate my dad, @davidfrum of @TheAtlantic tweeted the below,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote in reaction to Frum’s X post, sharing a screenshot of the pundit’s remarks.
“Truly deranged that after two verified assassination attempts, this sicko responds by claiming, without any evidence, that he is actually the one guilty of inciting violence!” Trump Jr. added.
Suspect Ryan Wesley Routh was reported to have positioned himself in the bushes near Trump International Golf Course, where he appeared to be lying in wait for Trump to come into his view.
Trump Jr. said on social media that an AK-47 was smuggled into the bushes on the golf course. Other reports say the suspect had also smuggled a Go-Pro camera, presumably to film what he allegedly planned to do.
September 15 marks the second assassination attempt Trump has survived in the span of two months.
This is not the first time Frum downplayed an assassination attempt against Trump.
On July 14, one day after former President Trump survived the first assassination attempt against him, Frum published an article in the Atlantic blaming the 45th president for his own attempted assassination.
As Breitbart News reported, Trump narrowly survived the July 13 assassination attempt when Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire on him — shooting him in the ear — while he was delivering remarks at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The assassination attempt resulted in the death of former fire chief Corey Comperatore. Two other rally goers, David Dutch and James Copenhaver, were severely injured.
Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
