US President Joe Biden has condemned the assassination of his predecessor Donald Trump in a prime-time address from the White House, telling the American people that US politics must never be a “killing field”.
Republican presidential candidate Trump suffered an ear injury after a gunman opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. One person was killed and two others were seriously injured in the attack.
In an Oval Office address – just the third of his presidency – Mr Biden urged Americans to “take a step back” and warned that “political discourse in this country has become very tense”.
“No matter how strong our convictions, we must never succumb to violence,” Biden said in a speech that lasted less than seven minutes.
His brief but powerful speech largely went smoothly, despite constant scrutiny after a few high-profile gaffes.
In a prime-time address, the president called on Americans to unite and warned that growing political polarization meant the November election would be a “testing time.”
Biden and Trump remain close in opinion polls ahead of the election.
Speaking from behind the Resolute Desk, Mr Biden listed a growing number of acts of political violence that have taken place in recent years.
“We cannot, we must not, go down this path again. We have been down this path before in our history,” he said, citing shootings targeting members of Congress in both parties, the attack on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband and the January 6 riot.
“In America, we resolve our differences through the ballot box,” he said. “Through the ballot box. Not with bullets.”
Saturday’s attack sent shockwaves through the United States, as Trump was hit in the ear just after he began speaking in Butler, Pennsylvania.
In images broadcast around the world, the 78-year-old could be seen with blood running from his ear and down his face, raising his fists in defiance as Secret Service agents dragged him off the stage and into a waiting car.
The gunman – identified by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20 – was shot dead by Secret Service agents at the scene. Law enforcement officers told the BBC’s US partner, CBS News, that they discovered explosives in his car nearby and at his home.
Officials said they are still investigating the motive for the attack. Crooks is a registered Republican and had previously donated $15 to a liberal campaign group in 2021, according to media reports.
Classmates described him as a quiet young man who was bullied throughout his school years. A local gun club near his home in Pennsylvania confirmed he was a member.
In his speech, Mr Biden said he was praying for the family of Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old former firefighter who was shot dead – along with two others who were critically injured – during the protest. The father of two died shielding his family from bullets as they whizzed past Mr Trump and hit people in the audience.
Mr Biden called Mr Comperatore a “hero” who was killed “simply exercising his freedom to support the candidate of his choice”.
Trump allies were quick to blame President Biden and his campaign for the attack, accusing the leading Democrat of trying to stoke fears of his rival returning to power.
“The core premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist and must be stopped at all costs,” JD Vance — a Republican senator who is being considered for the vice presidential nomination — wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
President Biden avoided addressing those criticisms in his remarks Sunday night, although his campaign temporarily pulled ads attacking Trump.
The former president himself has tried to strike a conciliatory tone since the shootings, thanking his Secret Service for acting quickly and calling on the nation to “unite” and “show true American character.”
He arrives in Milwaukee on Sunday evening to attend the Republican National Convention, where he will accept his party’s nomination for president.
Trump is also expected to announce his running mate. US media reports say only three men are still being considered for the vice presidential slot: Florida Senator Marco Rubio, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and Ohio Senator Vance.
At a press conference earlier Sunday, the Secret Service said it had no plans to impose additional security measures around the conference, saying it was satisfied with the existing arrangements.
The agency is under investigation for how Crooks was able to get so close to Trump, even though some viewers are said to have tipped him off to police.
