Donald Trump released a defiant message to supporters on Sunday after a shooting at his golf club in Florida when the former president was nearby.
“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL!” Trump said in a statement released by his campaign.
“Nothing will slow me down,” he added. “I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me. Unity. Peace. Make America Great Again.”
BREAKING: Update from former Pres. Trump:
“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL! Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me.… pic.twitter.com/aSDjZOmJmR
— Alex Salvi (@alexsalvinews) September 15, 2024
Officials said a gunman poked the muzzle of a rifle through a fence at Trump’s golf club in West Palm Beach while the former president was hitting the links, prompting Secret Service personnel to open fire on the suspect.
The gunman fled, but Martin County Sheriff’s Office said it stopped a vehicle and a suspect believed to be connected to the shooting was taken into custody. Martin County is located just north of Palm Beach County.
And the FBI later released a statement, saying, “The FBI has responded to West Palm Beach Florida and is investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump.”
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said his agency and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office are “investigating a protective incident involving former President Donald Trump that occurred shortly before 2 p.m.”
CNN Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst and former police official John Miller reported on the air that sources said law enforcement “recovered a backpack and a semi-automatic rifle” described as an AK-47.
A GoPro camera was also found, suggesting “this individual may have wanted to record himself in the first-person,” Miller added. He stressed that the information he was sharing was preliminary.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris “have been briefed about the security incident at the Trump International Golf Course, where former President Trump was golfing,” the White House said in a statement.
“They are relieved to know that he is safe,” the White House added. “They will be kept regularly updated by their team.”
Trump previously went through a harrowing attack in mid-July, when a shooter opened fire on him while he was speaking to a crowd during an outdoor campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The former president survived, though he was hit in his right ear by a bullet. He raised his fist into the air in a show of strength. One rallygoer, 50-year-old fireman Corey Comperatore, was killed. Two other attendees were wounded.
Secret Service snipers took out the gunman, identified as a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man named Thomas Matthew Crooks, who unleashed the attack with a rifle from the roof of a building about 150 yards away from the stage.
Multiple investigations ensued, with questions swirling about how law enforcement failed to stop the gunman in Butler before the shooting despite warning signs. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned amid blowback.
