President Trump has ordered the Secret Service to turn over “every bit of information” it has about the two men who tried to kill him during his presidential campaign.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 19, attempted to assassinate Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in July 2024. A bullet from his rifle struck Trump in the ear, before he was killed by law enforcement. Ryan Routh, 59, was apprehended after fleeing from the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, where he had been laying in wait for Trump, armed with a rifle.
Speaking to The New York Post, Trump said, “I’m entitled to know.”
“I want to find out about the two assassins… Why did the one guy [Crooks] have six cell phones and why did the other guy have [foreign] apps?
“No more holding back because of Biden… I’m entitled to know. And they held it back long enough.
“No excuses.”
Various questions surround the assassination attempts and the assassins themselves, including the motivation of the first shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and whether he was truly a “lone wolf.” FBI investigators found encrypted messaging accounts on his phone linked to platforms based in Belgium, Germany and New Zealand.
Ryan Routh, who served as a recruiter in Ukraine and self-published a bizarre screed on Amazon in which he called for Trump’s assassination, is currently being held awaiting trial, in September. He faces life in prison.