Trump Gunman Supported Tulsi And A Vivek-Nikki Ticket

Photo: Ryan Routh rallying in support of Ukraine. Photo: Reuters

India-West News Desk with Reuters

PALM BEACH, FL – As Republican presidential contended Donald Trump golfed here on September 15, a gunman attempted to assassinate him.

The suspect has been identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Hawaii. The Secret Service said its agents were accompanying Trump on the golf course, when one who was securing holes ahead of Trump spotted a gun barrel in some bushes near the property line.

Multiple agents engaged the gunman and fired at least four rounds at him. The gunman then dropped his AK-47 style rifle, two backpacks, a GoPro camera and other items and fled in a black Nissan car.

Palm Beach County sheriff Ric Bradshaw said a witness managed to take a photo of the suspected gunman’s car and license plate and gave it to authorities.

Shortly after, sheriff’s deputies in neighboring Martin County stopped the suspect on Interstate 95 and took him into custody.

Social media users, reporters and law enforcement officials found handles on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn for a Ryan Routh. Public access to the Facebook and X profiles was removed hours after the shooting but screenshots of his postings were already circulating.

The three accounts bearing Routh’s name suggest he was an avid supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russia. On April 21, Routh directed an X message to Elon Musk, in which he wrote: “I would like to buy a rocket from you. I wish to load it with a warhead for Putins Black Sea mansion bunker to end him. Can you give me a price please.”

On X in 2020, Routh expressed support for Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and mocked Biden as “sleepy Joe.” Then earlier this year, Routh tagged Biden in a post on X: “@POTUS Your campaign should be called something like KADAF. Keep America democratic and free. Trumps should be MASA …make Americans slaves again master. DEMOCRACY is on the ballot, and we cannot lose.”

Routh’s politics seems to have moved from Trump in 2016 to fellow Hawaiian Tulsi Gabbard in 2020, then Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley in 2024.

He seems to have been fully behind Gabbard and her bid for 2020 presidential nomination that was eventually won by Biden. He soured on Gabbard for her alignment with Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, writing on X in 2022, “why don’t you go and Join Putin and trump and be their third wheel.”

Also unearthed was this one by @prem_thakker