Photo by Brendan McDermid of Reuters. Fair use.
1,840 words
I was with a friend and his wife Saturday evening when we learned of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania. My friend’s mother — a spry, gun-toting, red-pilled granny whose favorite politician is Marjorie Taylor Greene — texted with the news. We immediately went online to see what was happening.
Much confusion at first. Couldn’t tell where Trump had been shot, or if he’d been shot. We thought at first he’d taken a bullet to the shoulder. Then the pictures began emerging of the bloody ear.
My reaction was surprisingly emotional.
Back in 2016 I was an enthusiastic Trump supporter, and I published a number of pieces on this website advocating for Trump (see, for example, “Take the Trumpwear Challenge” and “What Would Trump Do? The Donald as Role Model). When, seemingly against all odds, he defeated Hillary, I was jubilant (see “That Disorientation You Are Feeling is Called ‘Winning’”).
I was less than enthusiastic about Trump’s performance as President, however, as was the case with almost everyone on the dissident Right. I began to publish more critical pieces (e.g, “Does Bolton Speak the Truth About Trump?”). Still, I remained aware that if there was any chance at all to fight back against the Establishment at the ballot box, Trump was the only game in town. In posts I’d just as soon forget (I wince when I think about them) I confidently predicted Trump’s reelection in 2020 (see “What Will Liberals Do When Trump is Re-Elected?” — ouch! — and “In 2020, Will It Be ’68 or ’72?” — oh, the pain! The pain!).
I wasn’t too keen, at first, on Trump running again this year. I had been favoring someone such as Ron DeSantis. And Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s intelligence and integrity (and his quite reasonable positions on things such as immigration) almost seduced me — until he started issuing pronouncements on “systemic racism.” Reluctantly, I threw my support behind Trump once more when it became a near certainty that he would be the Republican nominee.
I am not an accelerationist — for one thing, I’ve got too much retirement money invested in the stock market — and I do think that elections matter. Maybe we can’t reform the system. Perhaps only a revolution can bring about real change. But then again, there is the slightest possibility that reform — real change — can happen from within.
Thus, I was once more forced to face the simple fact that if such reform is indeed possible, Trump is still the only game in town. The only genuinely anti-Establishment candidate with a solid chance of winning (unlike RFK, God bless him). But this time I resolved to lower my expectations. I started beginning a lot of sentences with “I have no illusions about Trump’s character, but . . .”
Then yesterday happened. After that bullet grazed Trump’s ear and he went down, the Secret Service pulled him back up again and surrounded him — and in that moment, Trump’s blood-streaked face registered, for perhaps the first time anyone has ever seen, pain and confusion. He seemed, momentarily, old and vulnerable. Then it just hit me: that feeling that I am about to get choked up, that I might start blubbering. I didn’t, but it was a close call. Then came that feeling of indignation: How dare they do this. How dare they . . .
It was a moment of self-awareness for me. In spite of all the ups and downs, all the blunders and bluster, all the stupid tweets, all the lost opportunities of that first term, all the inarticulate blather, and, especially, all the “Me! Me! Me!” — it’s clear to me now that I care deeply about this man. I’m not ashamed to say it.
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But that moment where Trump seemed wounded and vulnerable was swiftly succeeded by a moment of supreme triumph, when he raised his fist in the air repeatedly and yelled “Fight! Fight! Fight!” I was inspired and exhilarated — and closer to blubbering than ever, though I bit my lip.
My friend turned to me and said, “That’s it. This is going to push him over the top. He’s going to win the election.” I enthusiastically agreed. “He’s a gangster,” my friend said, repeatedly. I suppose this means we will soon hear even more encouraging news about the black vote.
Can you imagine any other politician reacting with such triumph and defiance moments after almost getting his head blown off? If it had happened to Joe Biden, he would most definitely have pooped his pants. No ambiguity this time.
Quite against my better judgment, I feel my old enthusiasm for Trump returning. And, with it, hope. I know I should fight these feelings, but I probably won’t. Time to dust off my old MAGA hat . . .
For all Trump’s faults, and they are many, he is an absolutely remarkable man. For nine years, ever since he descended that escalator, the powers-that-be have thrown everything at him hoping something would stick. He has been called a Russian spy, a white supremacist, and not just any old Nazi but literally Hitler. He has been plotted against, sued, and most recently prosecuted in cases so obviously politically motivated a child could perceive it. Trump now faces jail time (stay tuned; I predict he will get none).
Through it all, for nine years, Trump has never even lost his cool. It’s impossible — for me at least — not to admire this man, and wish that I could be a bit more like him. Unfortunately, I’m the kind of guy who loses his cool over replacing an AirTag battery. But I’m trying to be better.
Plus: Nothing they throw at Trump does any damage. In fact, it all just makes him stronger. It just increases his strength and his support. Now they are throwing bullets at him. Say goodbye to Teflon Don and say hello to Kevlar Don. And, yes, quite honestly it does all seem providential — especially that near miss on Saturday. Had Trump cocked his head differently, or had the trajectory of that bullet been one inch to the right . . .
I predict that this assassination attempt is going to result in a huge boost in the polls for Trump — polls that already show him handily defeating the senescent Biden (who must be pleased that, for the next few days at least, his political future will no longer be the top story).
The only historical parallel I can think of here is the 1912 assassination attempt against Teddy Roosevelt. Just before he was about to deliver a speech, some nutjob shot Roosevelt in the chest. Teddy was aware that it was not a life-threatening wound (the bullet lodged in muscle tissue) and insisted on delivering his speech, as blood trickled down his chest. He spoke for 90 minutes before allowing his aides to transport him to a hospital. “Friends,” he began, “I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible. I don’t know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot — but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose!” It would have been great if Trump had just continued speaking, but the Secret Service were not going to allow that.
As I was looking at coverage of the attempted assassination, I had a very keen sense that I was watching history unfolding before my eyes. As I studied those terrific images of Trump with fist raised, next to that Secret Service agent in the really cool sunglasses, I thought, “I’m seeing these images for the first time. I’ll see them again and again throughout the years and for the rest of my life.” (By the way, if anybody knows what brand of sunglasses those are, please tell me in the comments section, because I want to buy a pair.)
Saturday’s events are going to be endlessly analyzed and they will have uncountable implications for both the near and distant future. Again, I think that Trump’s bravery and defiance are going to impress a hell of a lot of people, including undecided voters (if there are any at this point). That blood on his face, and those brief moments where he registered pain and confusion, the moments that moved me so much, will also serve to humanize Trump in the eyes of many. His numbers are going to go up. Way up. And, yes, blacks are going to love this.
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It’s also clear even to people of average intelligence that the seeds of this event were planted by the Left — by its insane, non-stop, Trump-is-Hitler rhetoric. The only thing surprising about Trump being fired upon is that it hasn’t happened before. This could well put pressure on the Dems to dial down their rhetoric a bit — which would be highly problematic for them. Since Biden has no accomplishments to tout, their entire campaign strategy was built on vilifying Trump.
The assassination attempt will also make it highly unlikely that Trump will get jail time in that hush money case in New York. It was never very likely anyway, but now it seems impossible. As I write this, we still know little about the shooter and his motives — but the conspiracy theories are already flying fast and furious. A substantial number of voters are going to believe — regardless of whatever facts are unveiled — that the Left conspired to kill Trump. The situation in the country is now more volatile than ever; the hatred of one half of the country for the other, now more intense than ever. If the Left followed this up by sentencing Trump to prison, there would be blood in the streets. I don’t think Judge Merchan wants that on his hands.
Everyone seems united in condemning the Secret Service’s performance. I don’t feel qualified to make a judgment about that and would like to hear some expert opinion. Still, it is odd that the shooter was able to crawl all the way up onto that building with a rifle in his hands and without the Secret Service apparently noticing. And, yes, those dikey Secret Service broads did seem a bit befuddled and inept. Already, conservative pundits are playing clips of Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle talking about her mission to increase “diversity” in the agency, including the number of women. Expect the national debate on “diversity, equity, and inclusion” to intensify greatly.
The friend with whom I saw these events unfold on Saturday says he thinks that this is the most exciting presidential campaign in United States history. Just take a second or two to sum it up: the Trump prosecutions, the recent debate which seems to have spectacularly destroyed both Biden’s presidency and candidacy, and now an assassination attempt. What’s next? Will Biden and Trump actually play golf? My friend also thinks that it’s the most entertaining show on TV. And he’s right. How could anyone find politics boring?
This assassination attempt has now eclipsed Biden’s catastrophic debate performance as the greatest gift to Trump’s campaign. I predict that it will be the gift that keeps on giving, in many ways, some of them quite unpredictable.
25 comments
“A substantial number of voters are going to believe — regardless of whatever facts are unveiled — that the Left conspired to kill Trump.”
I haven’t seen any conspiratorial theories unveiled about leftist, but I have seen plenty of leftist statements on X that Trump staged the attempted shooting.
Like you I have an emotional attachment to Trump, even though I know he’s bound to disappoint. His Jewish donors will not allow him to keep any of his promises.
Still, he’s forced the globalist wing of the GOP to rip off its mask and has revealed, for all to see, its war mongering and pandering to Jewish donors. He’s also forced the Democrats to pull out all the stops and more openly to display their communist propensities. Will the likes of John McCain and Mitt Romney re-capture the GOP after Trump is gone? Tough to tell.
We’re not out of the woods yet, not when the likes of Nicki Haley are invited to the GOP convention. Ugh! We have along fight ahead of us.
This is no surprise to me. Political assassination has an almost primal, confounding effect on a national psyche that is impossible for even our calm, rational minds to predict. I have seen this myself, living in the Netherlands at the time of the Pim Fortuyn assassination. The man’s death transformed him from a political fad on a much smaller scale than Trump (he was never Prime Minister for one), into a permanent fixture of Dutch politics. His ghost was burned into the soul of the nation upon his slaying and it’s never left since, and even idealistic leftist young people like myself could not believe that someone would murder a man for his beliefs like that. It gave even the hard lefties pause, all but the hardest ones who had no morals to begin with. It made them wonder why they had been so conditioned to see this man dead in the first place. And it made everyone realize it wasn’t right. The few voices who would have cried out in joy at the murder of another human being were swiftly suppressed, even by their own side. A sense of grief and mourning descended upon the country, statues were erected, for a man who had previously been universally reviled for suggesting maybe we should have a border and stop mass-migration. It’s a shame the hole he left behind has now been filled exclusively by hucksters and rabid Zionists, but that’s the game these people play, that’s what Ben Shapiro and Nick Fuentes are here to do.
The same would happen with Trump gone. He would have become an immovable fixture of American politics for the next 50 years at the very least. Finger pointing would start right away, Democrats would be cowed, Republicans incensed and energized. Democrats would pretend to mourn his death with crocodile tears, some perhaps even signaling introspection about the blind hatred they’d felt (I can already see the Bill Maher speech about this), but their responsibility for the act would be widely recognized by the public. Republicans, even the RINOs, would make him an icon of their party. A white MLK. More thoughtful and rational Republicans might wish to pursue a “Trumpism without Trump” policy, and new young Republicans would be absolutely shaped by the assassination to their core. And of course, there would be an endless stream of grifters, phonies and hucksters trying to divert national energies and fill the void, with an endless parade of “Trumps of the Week” rising up and disappearing. It would be a mess, and a violent one considering the state of American politics – but Trump would loom large over all of the petty bickering from beyond the grave, his creed, the Wall, becoming a permanent fixture in all Republican politics going forward. There might not be a cohesive movement behind one leader, but the soft power of Trumpism would permeate American politics for the rest of our lifetime.
So yes. Hate Trump or love him, Trumpism is already unkillable, whether he’s dead or alive. At the very least, remember that the bullet meant for Trump is meant for the readers here, too.
Very interesting perspective. Thank you. I had no idea about the effect the Pim Fortuyn assassination had on Dutch society.
I sincerely believe that without the pioneering populism of Fortuyn and his subsequent assassination, the Netherlands would be as far left as Sweden today. Instead it’s closer to Denmark politically. Never quite populist enough, but close to it. Which itself can be quite frustrating.
Didn’t the murder of Theo van Gogh, around the same time, also contribute to the change in consciousness of the Dutch people?
I remember in an interview that Theodore Dalrymple (yes, I know) attributed his unusual popularity in the Netherlands to both murders. “I am the beneficiary of two assassinations”.
Wasn’t there also a famous artist that got his legs blown off in a car bomb around the same time?
Dalrymple is right on the money. Van Gogh’s was a different kind of slaying, however. Fortuyn was a populist politician subject to constant media attention killed by a white leftist, Van Gogh was a pundit slash filmmaker killed by the type of Muslim vermin that the left would like to flood the country with. The second was arguably a “smaller” event, but both were terrible blows to 1. the left itself and 2. what the left stood for (migrants). Both Fortuyn and Van Gogh were far from “far right” despite what the media would say about them. People simply stopped caring about that pointless term.
The killings of both have led to an anti-Muslim sentiment rather then an actual anti-migration sentiment, which the Zionists exploit by saying its the Muslims that are the problem, not open borders per se, muddying the waters. Its not a perfect situation but I appreciate the national shift in consciousness. I have recently seen Trump flags in peoples front yards, just to make a point.
A brazen, violent and foolish left and a bloodthirsty unsympathetic migrant population will do more redpilling than anyone on the right ever could. But it seems that sadly sacrifices are required. Breivik, in turn, turned the dial back and hurt the right in Europe. It seems whoever uses violence the most to make a point in times of peace, loses.
I understand the author’s emotional response. I simply don’t share it. It’s a mistake to think that Trump reciprocates anything you feel for him. If you’re genuinely a White Nationalist, Trump is your enemy. His donors want you ruined and replaced. His advisors want you ruined and replaced. His policies (‘staple a green card to every immigrant diploma’) want you ruined and replaced.
White Nationalists have nothing to gain by either is survival or his death. White Nationalists have nothing to gain by his election or his failure to get elected.
If you’re a White Nationalists and rooting for either Team Blue or Team Red, your eye has left the ball. Voting in national elections is legitimizing an anti-White system represented by anti-White parties who answer to anti-White donors.
There’s nothing there for you.
Every measure of emotional support you give Team Red is wasted.
The ruling class hates Whites who care about Whites more than they care about anything else.
Any time you care about anything else other than Whites caring about Whites because they are White, you’re expressing the colonization of your emotional life by anti-White-ism.
The First Struggle for any White Nationalists is to de-colonize their emotion and intellectual life of any political or intellectual loyalties that are not centered on Whites caring about Whites because they are White.
I agree with you but don’t condone personal attacks.
Maybe he has lost his way a bit. I do love Jef Costello as a writer though.
I was impressed by Trump’s presence of mind in that situation. He reaches up to his ear, and then before you even hear the report of the shot, he hits the deck. I wonder how many people would have grasped the situation that quickly.
I felt it too. At first, they only would say “Trump was shot” on TV, not telling us he was OK, and I felt anguish, similar to something you might feel with a loved one were in trouble as I worried if he was okay.
Trump’s greatest achievement was exposing just how corrupt the system is. Especially the media. But somehow it all gets lost on most people. It’s astonishing to me how anyone can still take the media seriously anymore.
Love or hate Trump, the photo of Trump – fist in the air, blood running down his face, flag in the background – is simply one of the most iconic photos in American history. Especially considering the barrage of attacks from the left, “literally Hitler” to the NYC felony show trial. The man has fucking balls and perseverance that can inspire anyone, whether or not he makes for a great president. These are historic times. Whether historic progress occurs, we will have to see.
The image/meme seen round the world … astonishing, like the flag raising at Iwo Jima. Donald is an unconscious agent of history. His meta-political significance is world-changing.
And now, once again, with Trump’s JD Vance pick for VP, with his Hindu wife and mixed-race children, we see his infallible gift for the wrong personnel choices. Quite dispiriting.
Dr ExCathedraL July 15, 2024 And now, once again, with Trump’s JD Vance pick for VP, with his Hindu wife and mixed-race children, we see his infallible gift for the wrong personnel choices. Quite dispiriting.
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I didn’t know that. Thank you. That’s all I needed to know about Mr. J.D. Vance. Should help Trumpster & Co. win a small slice of the race-mixer vote.
Don’t let that get you down, Dr. Ex. Forget the Dem vs GOP dog & pony show and focus on serious efforts to preserve the best elements of the White race.
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Don: July 15, 2024 … I have an emotional attachment to Trump, even though I know he’s bound to disappoint. His Jewish donors will not allow him to keep any of his promises…
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Nor will Jew-controlled MSM; nor will his Jewish daughter; nor his Jew speechwriters, nor the Jews in his cabinet, etc., etc. Perhaps you who are Trump fans didn’t read what I posted here yesterday: proof that Trump said in a speech that anti-Semites need the death penalty! That’s us friends, or should be, except that we, knowing what we know about the Tribe, ought to be anti-Jew and leave the large majority of Semites alone as long as they stay in their Semite lands and not in our living space. First, understand anti-Semitism with Dr. Thomas Dalton: “The Primacy of Anti-Semitism at nationalvanguard.org
Now, listen carefully to Trump’s own words, here: “The Second Coming of Trumpery part 1” at nationalvanguard.org
…The scourge of anti-Semitism cannot be ignored, cannot be tolerated, and it cannot be allowed to continue. We can’t allow it to continue. It must be confronted and condemned everywhere it rears its very ugly head. We must stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters to defeat anti-Semitism and vanquish the forces of hate. That’s what it is.
Through the centuries, the Jews have endured terrible persecution, and you know that. We’ve all read it. We’ve studied it. They’ve gone through a lot. And those seeking their destruction, we will seek their destruction. [applause]
And when you have crimes like this, whether it’s this one or another one on another group, we have to bring back the death penalty. [applause]
They have to pay the ultimate price. They have to pay the ultimate price. They can’t do this. They can’t do this to our country. We must draw a line in the sand and say very strongly: Never again. [applause]
That’s not AI impersonating Donald Trump; that’s your next President Donald Trump saying in a recorded speech that those who tell the truth about Jews should be put to death.
Vance married his Hindoo wife in a Hindoo marriage years ago, pre-Hindoo Hillbilly. There’s very little that happened in there that any reasonable person would endorse. This of course is going to put old J.D. on the horns of a dilemma.
If swarthy mischlings of indeterminate ethnicity are part of the MAGA plan, count me out. Miscegenation is just one of the many hydra heads of genocide-by-attrition.
Well-said, Jef, although I hope your friend was just being edgy or ironic with using “gangster.” Maybe I’ve lost a bit of my sense of humor lately, but the real gangsters at the top of politics are the Clintons, Obamas, and their minions, along with the RINO’s and Neocons. And, I’m sure, some people we’ve never heard of.
Anyway, Trump really is a godsend. He showed undeniable courage by waiting on that stage and telling people, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” At that point he wouldn’t have known if there were other assassins nearby or not. Can anyone imagine another nationally-known politician of today with that kind of courage and devotion? And for all his faults, he does show devotion.
If he gets into the White House, at the very least he prevents much worse from being there, and he buys time. He really did have some good accomplishments as president, in the areas of immigration, economics, foreign policy, and some cultural issues, although I was disappointed also with some aspects.
Anyone who wants the equivalent now of a one-drop rule in politics is either unrealistic, unhinged or, I suppose, an accelerationist, whose sentiments I don’t share. There are some rhymes between today and the years right before the American Civil War, with the extremely vitriolic rhetoric, deep social, cultural, and political divisions, etc. That first American Civil War killed a tremendous percentage of the population. A Civil War today would also probably be incredibly destructive, with no guarantee of who would come out ahead.
Maybe he did know, and it was all a set-up. The whole episode, as presented, is so rife with improbabilities that a conspiracy, designed to cement the Donald as the saviour-in-chief and involving a couple of possibly Israel-aligned or very well-remunerated secret service operatives, seems just as plausible.
Sounds like crazy talk to me.
Social media is rife with that crazy talk. It wasn’t a bullet, it was a glass chip from the TelePrompter. It wasn’t a wound, it was an exploding squib, like in the movies. Stage blood. The gunman was a patsy they lured up there. Etc. Etc.
Any one of these by itself could be reasonable but then you have to add in the complicity of the Secret Service and the near-certainty that the wheels will come right off your little conspiracy.
About those female Secret Service agents…
It looked like at least half of Trump’s personal bodyguard detail was female – mind boggling.
Yes, a couple looked a bit “befuddled & inept” for a few seconds, though not panicky or terrified. The blonde with her back turned to the camera trying to shield Trump on-stage looked like she knew what she was doing…or she was at least trying hard to do her job…but she was too small to really do her job, which was to shield with her body the very tall & very big Trump from another shot. When the three female agents were alongside Trump’s black SUV, guarding it as he got in, they looked like midgets “defending” a giant. For the agents on the bodyguard detail, physical bulk counts for a lot. (I suppose the solution will be replacing the white female agents with 300 pound Shaneequas after waving the fitness requirements.)
But the counter-snipers – who did their job effectively – appeared to be all white males. That needs to fixed before the Deep State takes another shot.
Not just females, but tiny little unfit females. Let’s start hiring 95 lb. male jockeys, for diversity’s sake. Or African pygmies. When do they get their turn?
(Of course taller, fitter women probably aren’t going to be in the catchment for Secret Service careers. Because, ugh. One of those inevitable paradoxes we call reality.)
Great essay, captured my feelings exactly. Trump the Man is impressive in unexpected ways, but has not been much use to true Occidentalists and WNs. But Trump the Symbol of White America To Our People’s Internal Enemies is very, very important. That’s what we’re choking up over – not the Platinum Plan suckup, not the Kardashian buddy, not the tweeter, not the lousy personnel picker, etc. It was Middle America that was aimed at and nearly killed on Saturday, and however prowhite we are, many of us still love (our) America, and can never be emancipated from that primal attachment.
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