President Joe Biden said on Monday that the Secret Service needs more personnel after a probable assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump a day earlier.
Speaking to reporters in the morning, Biden said he did not yet have a full report of the Sunday attempt at Trump’s Florida golf course and that he was thankful the former president was fine.
“Thank God the president is OK,” he said, referring to Trump.
“The service needs more help,” Biden told reporters as he departed the White House for Delaware. “Congress should respond to their need.
“They may decide whether they need more personnel or not.”
Biden isn’t the only elected U.S. official calling for more Secret Service resources since the second assassination attempt on Trump.
“Two assassination attempts in 60 days on a former President & the Republican nominee is unacceptable,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) wrote on social media platform X. “The Secret Service must come to Congress tomorrow, tell us what resources are needed to expand the protective perimeter, & lets allocate it in a bipartisan vote the same day.”
The FBI told The Epoch Times on Sunday that it is investigating the incident as an “apparent assassination attempt,” and few details have been released by the agency since then.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw and other law enforcement officials told a news conference around the same time that Secret Service agents encountered the alleged shooter after discovering a rifle muzzle sticking through a chain-link fence on the outer perimeter of the Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach County, Florida. The agent then engaged with the suspect, who fled the scene, according to the officials.
The suspect, who has not been publicly identified by law enforcement, was captured by sheriff’s officials in Marion County, the sheriff said.
Photos released during the news conference showed an AK-style rifle, a GoPro camera, and two backpacks near the fence. One of the photos appeared to show the rifle sticking through the fence.
During the news conference, Bradshaw, the sheriff, said that security at the Trump golf course was limited because he isn’t the sitting president. But he said that the agency had “provided exactly what the protection should have been.”
“I would imagine the next time [Trump] comes on a golf course, there will probably be … more people around the perimeter,” Bradshaw said.
Trump survived an assassination attempt in July as he was speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, although his right ear was struck. One person died and two others were injured in the shooting, which the FBI said was carried out by Thomas Matthew Crooks.
After that incident, questions were raised about the Secret Service and whether it did enough to secure the rally site.
On Sunday, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris said they were briefed about the probable assassination attempt in Florida, with both saying they were grateful that Trump wasn’t harmed.
“I am deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today. As we gather the facts, I will be clear: I condemn political violence. We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence,” said Harris, the Democratic Party’s nominee for president.
She added that she commends the Secret Service and law enforcement “for their vigilance” and that the Biden administration “will ensure the Secret Service has every resource, capability, and protective measure necessary to carry out its critical mission.”
Trump, meanwhile, thanked law enforcement and the Secret Service for their response in a Truth Social post issued late Sunday.
Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), also expressed gratitude that Trump had not been hurt.
“I’m glad President Trump is safe,” Vance wrote on X.
“I spoke to him before the news was public and he was, amazingly, in good spirits. Still much we don’t know, but I’ll be hugging my kids extra tight tonight and saying a prayer of gratitude.”