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Published 15 Jul, 2024 08:40am
Long history of shootings in US presidential
politics
AFP
WASHINGTON: Shots were fired during a rally speech by Donald Trump, in an incident that
investigators are treating as a possible assassination attempt on the former president.
Including Abraham Lincoln and JFK, here are some notable examples of shootings
involving US presidents or presidential candidates:
Ronald Reagan (1981)
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President Reagan was shot and seriously wounded as he left an event at the Hilton hotel in
Washington. The attacker was John Hinckley Jr, who was granted unconditional release in
2022.
Reagan spent twelve days in the hospital. The incident boosted Reagan’s popularity, as he
displayed humor and resilience during his recovery.
Many Americans believe the death of JFK began a more violent period in US
politics and society
Gerald Ford (1975)
President Ford was left unscathed in two separate assassination attempts by women in
September 1975, both in California and within a span of just 17 days.
George Wallace (1972)
While campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination, Wallace was shot four
times and paralysed for life at a shopping mall in Laurel, Maryland. The assassination
attempt on Wallace, who was known for his segregationist views and populist appeal,
highlighted the ongoing political tensions in the US and potential for domestic violence in
the Vietnam war era.
Robert F. Kennedy (1968)
President John F. Kennedy’s brother Robert, who was running for the Democratic
presidential nomination, was shot and killed at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles,
California.
The assassination had a profound impact on the 1968 presidential race and occurred just
two months after the killing of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, adding to the
political turmoil of the late 1960s.
John F. Kennedy (1963)
Riding in his motorcade with his wife Jackie, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas,
Texas by Lee Harvey Oswald. The Warren Commission investigating the assassination
concluded in 1964 that Lee Harvey Oswald, a former marine who had lived in the Soviet
Union, had acted alone.
Many Americans believe the death of JFK began a more violent period in US
politics and society, with the Vietnam War build up and the civil rights struggle as a
backdrop.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933)
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As president-elect, FDR was the target of an assassination attempt in Miami, Florida. He was
unharmed, but Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak was killed in the attack.
Theodore Roosevelt (1912)
Like Trump, Teddy Roosevelt was running for the White House as a former president when
he was shot in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The bullet, which remained lodged in his chest for
the rest of his life, was slowed by the folded 50-page speech and steel eyeglass case in his
breast pocket. Famously, Roosevelt decided to deliver his scheduled speech despite being
shot.
William McKinley (1901)
President McKinley was shot and killed by anarchist Leon Czolgosz in Buffalo, New York.
Abraham Lincoln (1865)
Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a well-known actor and Confederate
sympathizer, while watching a play called “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theater in
Washington. Booth’s attack, just days after the Confederate surrender in the Civil War, was
part of a larger plot that included attempts to assassinate Vice President Andrew Johnson
and Secretary of State William Seward.
Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2024
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