George Rebane
‘Political violence has no place in America’ was professed by tens of media mavens and history-light politicians immediately after Republican candidate Donald Trump almost bought the farm in Butler, Pennsylvania this afternoon. Bumblebrain even went on the air to state that such an act was “unprecedented” and “totally unacceptable” in American history. Au contraire.
Trump survived the event and was defiant with his fist in the air as he was rushed off the podium and into his waiting SUV. Two rally visitors were not so lucky – one was killed in the ensuing exchange of fire between the assassin and the Secret Service, and another attendee was wounded and is in serious condition. The assassin was brought down quickly by pre-positioned counter-sniper fire.
But to be clear about the historical precedents – violence is a long and well-established practice on the country’s political scene. The number of successful assassinations over the centuries are many, and the number of thwarted attempts are countless. This is not unusual in relatively free countries where people have access to firearms and other weapons, and is a price we pay for having the Second Amendment. In tightly controlled autocracies where people are kept unarmed, assassinations still occur at a good clip, but it is the tyrant and his thugs who do the killing of undesirable political opponents, uncooperative journalists, and recalcitrant intellectuals.
Tonight most of America is thankful that President Trump escaped with his life. Many of us have had trepidations over the last years about his open campaigning style which has continued to invite such attempts on his life, attempts that are nigh well impossible to guard against. (In this incident the ‘secured boundary’ from beyond which the assassin fired was less than 200 yards from the podium.) We will learn more about all this in the coming days. But I venture to say that Trump’s chances for returning to the Oval Office increased significantly tonight. Thank God he’s OK, and long may he wave.
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