Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) pushed for former President Donald Trump to receive protection from military planes, as even a small percentage of a threat to Trump’s life ought to be taken seriously.
The congressman argued Iran does not want the former president to return to power due to the “maximum pressure campaign” he would establish, calling for Trump to have the necessary protection needed to meet the threat he faces. Trump has survived two assassination attempts within the last three months, with the first shooting barely missing him at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“I am hearing that there is hand-wringing within the administration about the validity of the threat, and my point is even if it’s only 5% possibility, the … gosh, I mean, how this would tear the country apart, the catastrophic effect,” Waltz said on Fox News’s The Story with Martha MacCallum, guest-hosted by Gillian Turner. “This would be an act of war, and America would come apart at the seams. And look, Gillian, public service should not be a death sentence. We need to give him every asset. The administration said President Trump has the same level of security as Biden and Harris. Biden and Harris are flying in military planes with all of their defenses, we need the same for President Trump too, to match this unprecedented threat.”
Waltz explained that the threats Trump faces are “very real” and the former president needs protection on both the ground and in the air. He reiterated that the current assets need to match the threats a presidential candidate faces and that the threats against Trump are “through the roof.”
When asked if he thinks his request for these planes will be approved when there are only about three weeks left before the election, Waltz argued that his request “certainly should” get approved and that he would “keep pounding the table” until it is.
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The second assassination attempt on Trump took place while he was out golfing in Florida. The gunman, identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, was hiding with a firearm before fleeing the scene. Multiple investigations, including one by the FBI and another by the state of Florida, have been launched since the attempt.
Sunday marked the three-month anniversary of the first assassination attempt on Trump in Pennsylvania, which killed one person and injured two others. The former president returned to the area for another rally earlier this month.