# Breaking news: Trump safe after shots fired near Palm Beach golf club 2024/09/15 **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** breaking-news, trump\ **Created:** [September 15, 2024, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312 "2024-09-15T20:01:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/121 "2024-09-17T16:33:37Z")
No. I’d say it rises to an actual plan. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/122 "2024-09-17T16:51:47Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > it rises to an actual plan. No, not just a plan. This is a plan that was actually being executed in realtime. He was caught in the middle of a criminal act. Just as much as someone standing by in a getaway car. In fact he had a getaway car that he used to . . . getaway. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/123 "2024-09-17T16:51:48Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > The golf outing was not on Trump’s schedule and therefore was not announced. > > Trump is, however, known to spend much of his own free time golfing. He is also known to use his own golf courses. If you wanted to find Trump during unscheduled time “Trump golf course” is a pretty good guess. This, exactly. This WaPo article (gift link below) outlines how Trump’s golf habits make it challenging for the Secret Service to protect him. Part of it is that he insists on golfing on his own courses, where security is not nearly as tight, as opposed to courses on military bases (which is where Obama primarily golfed). But, a big part is that Trump is extremely predictable: > [@](#): > > “People are saying, ‘How did [the suspect] know he’d be there?’” said a former senior U.S. official. “Well, if you were looking for Trump on a Sunday afternoon, I can tell you where he’d be. Whatever golf course of his that was closest to where he was.” > > Bill Gage, a former Secret Service agent, said the armed man probably didn’t need to do “very sophisticated surveillance.” > > “He just had to sit and wait for Trump to arrive,” he said. “You don’t have to do a lot of guessing to know where he is going to be, and that gives a bad guy time to prepare,” he said. [https://wapo.st/3MKPJ8G](https://wapo.st/3MKPJ8G) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/124 "2024-09-17T17:51:45Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Based on his arrest photos he was wearing a pink shirt. Yeah, not exactly the best choice for hiding in green bushes. Probably coulda made a better wardrobe choice. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/125 "2024-09-17T17:56:26Z")
> [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](#): > > Probably coulda made a better wardrobe choice. A ghillie suit. ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/126 "2024-09-17T17:56:55Z")
More about the suspect. Not sure if this was shared, but he was interviewed by the NYT last year and I thought it was interesting. It’s about his involvement in Ukraine. NYT article from 2023: [Stolen Valor: The U.S. Volunteers in Ukraine Who Lie, Waste and Bicker](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/25/world/europe/volunteers-us-ukraine-lies.html?unlocked_article_code=1.LU4.gVrU.E3d0nAaY0jpo&smid=url-share)…_People who would not be allowed anywhere near the battlefield in a U.S.-led war are active on the Ukrainian front, with ready access to American weapons_. > The International Legion, hastily formed by the Ukrainian government, spent 10 minutes or less checking each volunteer’s background early in the war…With Legion growth stalling, **Ryan Routh** , a former construction worker from Greensboro, N.C., is seeking recruits from among Afghan soldiers who fled the Taliban. Mr. Routh, who spent several months in Ukraine last year, said he planned to move them, in some cases illegally, from Pakistan and Iran to Ukraine. He said dozens had expressed interest. > > “We can probably purchase some passports through Pakistan, since it’s such a corrupt country,” he said in an interview from Washington. > > It is not clear whether he has succeeded, but one former Afghan soldier said he had been contacted and was interested in fighting if it meant leaving Iran, where he was living illegally. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/127 "2024-09-17T17:59:16Z")
> [@Bill\_Door](#): > > Really, it was only a concept of an assassination. I posted a similar thought in another thread. I should have labelled it as sarcasm, and I assume you meant the same. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/128 "2024-09-17T18:03:10Z")
I’m getting a Lee Harvey Oswald vibe about this guy. A life long loser who doesn’t obey normal social rules. Routh is attracted to criminal things while Oswald was attracted to Socialism, etc. Oswald went to the Soviet Union hoping to become a hero. Routh went to Ukraine hoping to become a hero. Both failed. After years of failing at everything it was time to take down a famous person in order to become famous oneself. (Similar to Mark David Chapman. John Hinckley Jr. is a bit different, hoping to get the attention mainly of just one person.) They might have little to no animosity towards their target. There may be politics in the background of the criminal’s mind as to reason but infamy is the big draw. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/129 "2024-09-17T18:03:50Z")
I’m kind of with Sideshow Bob on this. Attempted murder? Do they give a Nobel Prize for attempted chemistry? The crimes he’s been charged with should be sufficient to protect the candidate and the public. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/130 "2024-09-17T22:37:57Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I’m getting a Lee Harvey Oswald vibe about this guy. You know the rules. Lone gunmen get identified by three names. “Serial killers. Serial killers only have two names. You ever notice that? But lone gunmen assassins, they always have three names. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, Mark David Chapman…” And now, Ryan Wesley Routh. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/131 "2024-09-17T22:56:26Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > According to the [Journalist’s Guide to Firearms Identification](https://external-preview.redd.it/6bWS1qPodzlYomu13JZUxtlKD56cSnfgJELmBRm3TRo.jpg?auto=webp&s=8586a4d950fa86d66d5a479e16225580a67db730) it most definitely, probably, likely, possibly was an AK-47 How often is it actually journalists identifying the weapon, though? I’d expect that, most typically, the weapon would be identified by law enforcement, and journalists would just report whatever law enforcement told them. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/132 "2024-09-17T23:31:36Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > > [@ftg](#): > > > > I’m getting a Lee Harvey Oswald vibe about this guy. > > You know the rules. Lone gunmen get identified by three names. > > “Serial killers. Serial killers only have two names. You ever notice that? But lone gunmen assassins, they always have three names. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, Mark David Chapman…” And now, Ryan Wesley Routh. I instantly thought of an exception - serial killer [Joseph Paul Franklin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Paul_Franklin). I remember when Franklin was caught, and he was always referred to by all three names. And there were the D.C. snipers - John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/133 "2024-09-17T23:31:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > > [@Spiderman](#): > > > > According to the [Journalist’s Guide to Firearms Identification](https://external-preview.redd.it/6bWS1qPodzlYomu13JZUxtlKD56cSnfgJELmBRm3TRo.jpg?auto=webp&s=8586a4d950fa86d66d5a479e16225580a67db730) it most definitely, probably, likely, possibly was an AK-47 > > How often is it actually journalists identifying the weapon, though? I’d expect that, most typically, the weapon would be identified by law enforcement, and journalists would just report whatever law enforcement told them. In the breaking news phase there is often wildly inaccurate information about weapons. In this story I saw reports of an AR style weapon and that was after the picture was released. I understand confusion between an AK and SKS. They do share some visual similarities. Saying was an AR is just ignorance of the subject. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2024, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/134 "2024-09-17T23:47:32Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > In the breaking news phase there is often wildly inaccurate information about weapons. Right, but whose fault is that? Is it reporters misidentifying weapons, or the police? I would expect that the police would take possession of the weapon before reporters got there: It’s not like they’re going to just show the reporters the weapon and say “Hey, you tell us what sort of gun this is”. All the reporters can know about the weapon is what the police tell them, and so if weapons are often misidentified, that’s on the police, not the reporters. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2024, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/135 "2024-09-18T06:37:01Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I instantly thought of an exception - serial killer [Joseph Paul Franklin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Paul_Franklin). I remember when Franklin was caught, and he was always referred to by all three names. > > And there were the D.C. snipers - John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo. And John Wayne Gacy. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2024, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/136 "2024-09-18T10:16:59Z")
A reason, perhaps _the_ reason, that infamous assassins and murderers are known to history by three names, even though they probably weren’t addressed that way by friends and acquaintances, is the press. When you are identifying someone as a suspect in a notorious crime, it behooves you to be as specific and precise as possible. You don’t want to embarrass other people named Lee Oswald or Mark Chapman, to say nothing of possibly opening yourself up to a defamation lawsuit. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2024, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/137 "2024-09-18T10:26:48Z")
And law enforcement will often initiate there description by the full name from the start. Most likley for the same reason, to be specific and clear about who the suspect is. I did a Been Verified search on Ryan Routh and got many hits all over the country, but when I put in his full name I came up with one guy, in Hawaii and I thought this cant be right. Turns out after more reporting it was correct. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2024, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/138 "2024-09-18T14:14:33Z")
An interesting article about the issues surrounding the protection of the wild Trump; > **[Ex-agent explains why protecting Trump is such a unique challenge](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6qvg78z8no)** > > The amount of time he spends outside, the exuberance of his fan base and the number and size of rallies are among difficulties. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2024, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/139 "2024-09-18T16:51:58Z")
When you make yourself unsafe, don’t blame your protectors. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2024, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312/140 "2024-09-19T11:28:45Z")
well, its trump after all, blaming others for your own ~~mistakes~~ predictable actions, is par for the course … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-trump-safe-after-shots-fired-near-palm-beach-golf-club-2024-09-15/1007312.md?page=8)