Reactions from the left to the second assassination attempt on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump have been predictably all over the place, ranging from outright denial to somehow finding a way to blame Trump himself. Despite the severity of the situation, Democrats, corporate media, and even Kamala Harris—Trump’s rival and Democratic presidential nominee—have been slow to acknowledge the reality of the situation. Harris, along with her media allies, seems more interested in downplaying the event than addressing the danger it posed.
Hours after the news broke, Harris finally released a statement, but even then, she couldn’t bring herself to call it what it was. Instead, she referred to it as a “possible assassination attempt,” as though it was still up in the air whether someone actually tried to kill Trump. In typical political fashion, Harris added she was “deeply disturbed” by the incident and urged everyone to ensure it doesn’t lead to more violence. Sure, because calling an assassination attempt “possible” really sets the tone for calming things down. She also added that she was “thankful” Trump wasn’t harmed—though that sentiment felt a little forced, given her past comments.
Critics didn’t waste any time reminding Harris of her infamous quip on “The Ellen Show” back in 2018, where she joked about being stuck in an elevator with Trump and questioned whether “one of us has to come out alive.” It’s a bit hard to take her condemnation of violence seriously when she’s joked about it herself in the past. Yet here we are, with Harris now acting as though she’s the moral compass on political discourse.
Meanwhile, the left-wing media has already started spinning this as Trump’s fault. MSNBC’s Alex Witt asked Elise Jordan if Trump’s campaign might suggest he “tone down the rhetoric,” implying that Trump somehow incited this attempt on his life. Over on NBC, Lester Holt joined the chorus, suggesting the incident was connected to “fierce rhetoric” on the campaign trail, specifically pointing fingers at Trump and his running mate, JD Vance. Apparently, Vance’s comments about Haitian immigrants in Ohio are somehow responsible for bomb threats, and now, the media is linking those comments to an attempted assassination on Trump.
ABC News jumped in too, sandwiching coverage of the assassination attempt between stories about so-called “debunked claims” regarding Haitian immigrants. It was almost as if they wanted to make sure viewers knew the real problem isn’t that someone tried to shoot Trump but that Trump and Vance were spreading rumors that supposedly led to violence. The mental gymnastics to make Trump the villain in his own assassination attempt would be impressive if it wasn’t so ridiculous.
Meanwhile, Harris supporters seem to be more concerned about being “exhausted” by the drama than the actual attempt on Trump’s life. One supporter posted, “11/5 can’t come soon enough,” while others echoed the sentiment of being tired of the political chaos. Apparently, a second assassination attempt in two months is just too much for them to deal with, so their solution is to vote for Harris and move on.
Conservatives, however, aren’t buying this narrative. Many on the right, like Roger Stone, have pointed out the blatant hypocrisy, sharing clips of left-wing politicians and activists calling for “unrest” in response to Trump’s leadership. Arizona State Rep. Joseph Chaplik summed it up best when he pointed out the absurdity: “President Trump was nearly assassinated for the second time in two months, and the left-wing media is blaming HIM.”
