The following piece is an opinion and does not reflect the views of The Eagle and its staff. All opinions are edited for grammar, style and argument structure and fact-checked, but the opinions are the writer’s own.
Depending on who you ask, America’s worst nightmare or dream scenario unfolded on July 13, 2024. For a moment, the country and local rally-goers thought the impossible happened — a presidential assassination — an event that has not made serious U.S. headlines since the attempted assassination of former President Ronald Reagan in 1981. In a moment of political despair, such an event should have brought both left and right together in the face of adversity. Yet, as one may have noticed, reactions to the assassination attempt are better described as accusatory and fanned flames for further political turmoil.
Before any basic facts were released about the shooting at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, some individuals in both the Democratic and Republican parties immediately took to social media and news outlets to express their opinions.
Among some Democrats, whispers of a potential staged event swept mainstream social media. The term “BB gun” began trending. A user posted on the social platform X, “THIS IS THE MOST STAGED S--- I’VE EVER SEEN … AN ACTIVE SHOOTER AND SECRET SERVICE JUST ALLOWS HIM TO STAND BACK UP FOR A F------ FIST UP?!” The post has been viewed over 16.2 million times.
Amongst Republicans, many of who support Trump’s Make America Great Again movement, such as vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance took to X to directly blame President Joe Biden for inciting the shooting. Vance wrote on X, “The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs … That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.” Fellow Republican Rep. Mike Collins wrote on X, “Joe Biden sent the orders.” These preemptive conclusions further split the GOP’s moral foundation.
The shooting was a tragedy; there is no denying this. The attempted assassination resulted in the death of an innocent man and the injury of others for simply exercising their First Amendment right to voice their opinion. However, the shooting was not met with horror from the American people but with rage and reflexive backlash.
I’m personally ashamed to have seen TikToks and Tweets uplifting the “staged” rumor and rumors that Biden sent an assassination order. It is a laughable concept that any side — Democrat or Republican — would stage such a travesty for the sake of political gain. But this makes me wonder: where has our tolerance and trust in each other gone to believe and spew such utter nonsense?
Examining the roots of the on-going backlash and shifts is difficult, in part because we want to unify the population and not divide. However, we can see that some of the most divisive and violent comments have come from the MAGA Republicans. Again, while it is crucial to avoid further division, it’s equally important to address these issues head-on to understand the forces at play. Looking back on the shift in American politics, primarily in the GOP, we see a significant shift in ideology when Trump was elected. The party has now been shifted to headlining the likeness of ultraconservative senators such as Vance and Josh Hawley, as well as the rest of the House Freedom Caucus.
The entire basis of politics is to fundamentally disagree, however, disagreements must be formulated into agreements. Now more than ever, rifts are happening in both political and personal spheres, creating a prideful blockade that has prevented important legislation from being passed in both legislative chambers.
There is genuine anger in the MAGA mentality that further separates them from the traditional Republican party of Sen. Mitt Romney and the late Sen. John McCain, contributing to this violent and prideful blockade. Trump will go down in history, not just for his controversial policies that have significantly uplifted both gun rights and fear-mongering, but for his violence-inciting mentality that has resulted in the rise of hate groups such as the Proud Boys and events like the Jan. 6 insurrection. As these divides grow, it’s more important than ever that we seek common ground and engage in meaningful dialogue to heal the rifts. Only by coming together, setting aside our differences and focusing on shared values can we work towards a more unified and peaceful nation.
How America pulls itself out of the current troubling dynamic is uncertain. Thoughts and prayers are nothing more than words as the sounds of gunshots rapidly become less tragic and more political. We, the traditional and working-class Americans, are left to dodge and pick up the shrapnel from the guns that our politicians repeatedly fire. However, there is still room for rational thinking in politics, and it starts with us.
Mari Santos is a junior in the School of Public Affairs and a columnist for The Eagle.
This piece was edited by Alana Parker, Rebeca Samano Arellano and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks and Charlie Mennuti.
