On 15th September (local time), a man identified as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh was arrested for an attempted assassination of former President of the United States, Donald Trump. He was spotted less than 500 metres away from the family golf course of Trump, located in West Palm Beach, where the former president was present at the time of the gunfire. Trump’s Secret Service detail spotted Routh and fired multiple shots at him, but he managed to escape. He was later arrested based on information provided by eyewitnesses.
Ryan has a long criminal history
According to CBS News, Ryan Routh has a long criminal history. His recent address was listed in Hawaii, but for most of his life, he lived in North Carolina. He owned Camp Box Honolulu, which is a shed-building company.
His criminal record shows that Routh has had problems with the law for decades. According to North Carolina Department of Corrections records, in 2002, he was charged with possession of a weapon of mass destruction, which is a felony. In another incident, he was charged with misdemeanours that included resisting arrest, concealed weapons violations, and a hit-and-run offence. Routh was also accused of writing bad cheques on multiple occasions, according to the reports.
OK. Am I reading this right?
— 1984 (@TheOfficial1984) September 16, 2024
The Trump shooter was caught in 2002 with a
WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION!?
….AND GOT PROBATION!?
Somebody make it make sense. pic.twitter.com/hhzis83HzT
Routh appeared in a Nazi battalion video
He also appeared in an Azov battalion propaganda video in 2022. Azov is a Nazi battalion. He can be seen at 1:40 minute timestamp.
EXCLUSIVE: Attempted Trump assassin Ryan Routh appeared in a propaganda video for the AZOV BATTALLION in May 2022 pic.twitter.com/eugjHXHXqw
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) September 16, 2024
The Azov Battalion is a Ukrainian far-right, nationalist paramilitary group formed in 2014 during the conflict in Eastern Ukraine. Originally a volunteer militia, it gained notoriety for its neo-Nazi ideologies and use of Nazi symbols. Despite its controversial origins, the battalion was later incorporated into Ukraine’s National Guard. Its extreme views and actions contradict Western democratic values, yet the group has received tacit support from NATO and the USA in their broader strategy against Russian aggression.
Criticised Trump online
In the primary election in North Carolina, Routh voted for the Democratic Party. North Carolina State Board of Elections records showed that he voted in person and appeared to be registered as an unaffiliated voter.
His online activity made it clear that he did not like Donald Trump and had criticised him online. Though his X and Facebook accounts have been scrapped by the social media companies, screenshots of several of his tweets, a list of his followers, and other information are being circulated widely.
Here is a screen recording with all of attempted assassin @RyanRouth’s posts, in case his account gets deleted. pic.twitter.com/qyiURqNZp0
— Billboard Chris 🇨🇦🇺🇸 (@BillboardChris) September 15, 2024
In one of his posts about Trump, he wrote, “@realDonaldTrump While you were my choice in 2016, I and the world hoped that President Trump would be different and better than the candidate, but we all were greatly disappointed and it seems you are getting worse and devolving,” he wrote in a June 2020 post. “I will be glad when you [are] gone.”
In other posts, he referred to the 13th July assassination attempt on Trump and suggested that President Biden and VP Harris should visit the injured and attend the funeral of the rally attendee who was killed during the gunfire.
Passionate about Ukraine
As more information about him comes to light, it has been revealed that he was a passionate supporter of Ukraine amid the Russia-Ukraine war. His social media posts were full of pro-Ukraine views and talked about travelling overseas, hoping to fight for Ukraine in the “war against Russia in 2022”.
In an interview with Newsweek Romania in 2022, he said, “My initial goal was to come fight … but I’m 56, so initially they were like, I have no military experience, so they were like, you’re not an ideal candidate. So, they said, not right this minute. So plan B was to come here to Kyiv and promote getting more people here.”
In the video, Ryan expressed his strong belief that the conflict in Ukraine was a clear battle between good and evil, likening it to a storybook scenario where the moral lines are clearly defined. He emphasised the importance of global solidarity and unity, urging everyone to support Ukraine. Ryan travelled from Hawaii to Ukraine with the initial intention of fighting but was deemed not an ideal candidate due to his age and lack of military experience. Instead, he shifted his focus to promoting the cause and encouraging others to join.
Alleged links to Democrats
Some social media posts claim that Routh had links to Rep Adam Kinzinger through his support of Ukraine.
Second Trump assassin, Ryan Wesley Routh, was connected to Rep Adam Kinzinger through his support of Ukraine. Here he’s being interviewed by Newsweek about his effort to recruit mercenaries to fight in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/6SnLYFkHv7
— @amuse (@amuse) September 15, 2024
However, Kinzinger denied the allegations in a social media post on X. Quoting an X user AJ Huber, he wrote, “Never heard of this dude before today. Nice try. By the way you put God stuff all over your profile. May want to try following his teachings about truth.”
Never heard of this dude before today.
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦🇮🇱 (@AdamKinzinger) September 16, 2024
Nice try.
By the way you put God stuff all over your profile. May want to try following his teachings about truth. https://t.co/DzRJlJanZv
The United States needs a reality check sooner rather than later
The attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump by Ryan Routh exposed the deranged normalisation of violent rhetoric and actions by radical left liberals. While these individuals often position themselves as defenders of democracy, they do not hesitate to indulge in extreme actions, such as cheering for violence against political opponents. When the first attempt on Donald Trump happened on 13th July, there was a flood of social media posts expressing sympathy for the shooter, and some even showed anger that the shooter missed.
This disturbing trend of supporting violence against opposing ideologies coincides with the hypocrisy of the United States. While the so-called superpower of the world preaches democracy globally, it struggles to uphold the basic principles of democracy within its borders. The United States has a long history of interfering in the internal affairs of foreign countries and even toppling governments that the West does not favour.
Furthermore, the rampant gun violence, widespread crime, and political unrest in the United States are completely at odds with the image it projects to the world. The recent attack on Trump serves as a stark reminder of how political polarisation and unchecked radicalism are eroding the roots of democracy in the US.
