US President Joe Biden on Sunday (July 14) appealed to the people of the country not to “make assumptions” about the motive or affiliations of the shooter who shot at his predecessor Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania a day before, in which he received injury in his right ear. Biden called upon the Americans to “unite as one nation” after the attempted assassination of the Republican presidential election candidate. The FBI, as well, informed that they are investigating Saturday's attack as a potential “domestic terrorism” act.
Biden delivered a short afternoon address to the nation from the White House after receiving a briefing on the investigation in the Situation Room. He ordered an independent security review of how an attack of this magnitude could have happened.
In a prime-time national address from the Oval Office, “I want to speak to you tonight about the need for us to lower the temperature in our politics and to remember, while we may disagree, we are not enemies we are neighbours, friends, coworkers, citizens, and most importantly, we are fellow Americans.” Calling for national unity, he said, “We must stand together”.
“Yesterday's shooting at Donald Trump's rally in Pennsylvania calls on all of us to take a step back, take stock of where we are and how we go forward from here,” he said.
The president said he has also directed the U.S. Secret Service to review all security measures for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday in Milwaukee. Hours later, Audrey Gibson-Cicchino, the Secret Service's coordinator for the convention, said the weekend attack against Trump did not prompt any changes to the agency's security plan for the event and that officials “are fully prepared.”
"It's not who we are as a nation. It's not American. And we cannot allow this to happen," Biden said. “Unity is the most elusive goal of all, but nothing is more important than that right now."
“We don't know his opinions or affiliations. We don't know whether he had help or support or if he communicated with anyone else. Law enforcement professionals, as I speak, are investigating those questions," he added.
What’s the latest from the FBI on Trump’s assassination bid?
The FBI, which is leading the investigation of the attack, said that the gunman, identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks (20), appears to have acted alone and the agency is probing the attack as a potential “domestic terrorism” act.
“At this point in the investigation, it appears that he was a lone actor, but we still have more investigation to go,” said Robert Wells, the executive assistant director of the FBI’s National Security Branch. The counterterrorism division and criminal divisions are working jointly together to determine the motive, he added.
“The shooter may be deceased, but the investigation is very much ongoing. And, because of that, we are limited in what we say at this point,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said.
“What we witnessed yesterday was nothing short of an attack on democracy and our democratic process,” he told reporters at a news conference in Washington DC.
According to an FBI official, the investigation into the gunman at Donald Trump’s rally Saturday has not yet turned up any mental health issues, threatening posts or other motives, but cautioned it was still early.
The shooter, as per FBI, used an AR-style rifle chambered in 5.56mm, a common calibre for such weapons.
Attack on Trump
Trump was hit with a bullet that pierced the upper part of his right ear. He is now safe and is continuing with his schedule that includes travelling to Milwaukee to attend the Republican National Convention, which would formally nominate him as the party’s presidential nominee against incumbent Joe Biden.
(With AP inputs)
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