On Sunday, for the second time in nine weeks, an attempt was made on Donald Trump's life. Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, armed with a scoped AR-15, aimed the rifle's muzzle through the fence of Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach, Fla., while Trump was golfing. Secret Service agents foiled the plot when they spotted the rifle's barrel protruding from the shrubbery and immediately opened fire. Routh fled the scene, but local authorities quickly apprehended him before he could escape, reportedly without resisting.
The first thing to note is that Routh is an anti-Trump wacko, based on what has come out since the attempted assassination.
Related: Son of Would-Be Trump Assassin Says Father ‘Hates Trump Like Every Reasonable Person Does'
Since then, we've learned more about the shooter, and it turns out that Routh was hardly some random guy. In fact, the media have interviewed him several times in the past. Routh is obsessed with the war in Ukraine and spoke with the New York Times last year about his efforts to support Ukraine's war effort.
In a telephone interview with The New York Times in 2023, when Mr. Routh was in Washington, he spoke with a self-assuredness of a seasoned diplomat who thought his plans to support Ukraine’s war effort were sure to succeed. But he appeared to have little patience for anyone who got in his way. When an American foreign fighter seemed to talk down to him in a Facebook message he shared with The New York Times, Mr. Routh said, “he needs to be shot.”
In the interview, Mr. Routh said he was in Washington to meet with the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, known as the Helsinki Commission “for two hours” to help push for more support for Ukraine. The commission is led by members of Congress and staffed by congressional aides. It is influential on matters of democracy and security and has been vocal in supporting Ukraine.
Routh told the paper that he was recruiting former Afghan soldiers who fled the Taliban, some of whom were living illegally in Pakistan and Iran, to fight in Ukraine. He suggested using corrupt channels in Pakistan to purchase passports for their relocation. While it's unclear if Routh succeeded in doing so, one former Afghan soldier confirmed he had been contacted and expressed interest in joining if it meant leaving Iran.
Routh also spoke with Semafor.
When Ryan Routh spoke to Semafor on March 7, 2023, he was frustrated with the Ukrainian government for which he’d traveled around the world to support.
The Ukrainians, he complained, were being too rigid about admitting foreign soldiers of dubious qualifications, including a group of Afghan commandos who were facing skepticism and bureaucratic roadblocks in Kyiv.
“Ukraine is very often hard to work with. Many foreign soldiers leave after a week in Ukraine or must move from unit to unit to find a place they are respected and appreciated,” he told Semafor. He’d been “yelled at” every time he suggested they tap Afghan commandos. “They’re afraid that anybody and everybody is a Russian spy,” he said with frustration.
At the time Semafor interviewed him, Routh was one of many American volunteers in Ukraine and had appointed himself the director of a group he founded, the International Volunteer Center. According to a Ukrainian involved in the group, Routh was overly enthusiastic but genuinely engaged in recruiting foreign fighters, including Afghan soldiers.
Related: Remember When Kamala Harris Joked About Killing Trump?
On X, Routh repeatedly tweeted suggestions to President Zelenskyy, such as creating a tent city in Independence Park to house foreign supporters, though Zelenskyy never responded.
Newsweek also interviewed Routh in 2022:
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
It gets weirder. Do you remember how the first Trump shooter, Thomas Crooks, appeared in a BlackRock commercial? Well, Routh is featured in a pro-Ukrainian commercial.
What are the odds that the two shooters who have attempted to assassinate President Trump are in two very distinct and different commercials? One supporting Ukraine and the other a BlackRock ad 🤔
— Sara A. Carter (@SaraCarterDC) September 16, 2024
BIZARRE ? OR IF YOU WERE A BETTING MAN, YOU’D say ( fill in the blank) https://t.co/ut74k5cgiX
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