‘The power to change America should always rest in the hands of the people—not in the hands of would-be assassins,’ the president said.
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden on July 14 addressed the nation from the Oval Office, highlighting a need to “lower the temperature in our politics” in the wake of the assassination attempt against his 2024 political rival, former President Donald Trump.
“We are not enemies. We’re neighbors or friends, coworkers, citizens, and most importantly, we’re fellow Americans,” the president said. “We must stand together.”
This was his first Oval Office address since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel last year. He spoke for just over 6 minutes.
He said the political rhetoric in the country “has gotten very heated.”
“It’s time to cool it down,” the president said.
The shooting, he noted, calls on Americans to “take a step back, take stock of where we are, how we go forward from here.”
The president reiterated his condemnation of the attack, saying, “There is no place in America for this kind of violence, for any violence ever. Period. No exceptions.”
“The power to change America should always rest in the hands of the people—not in the hands of would-be assassins,” the president added.
Authorities identified the deceased shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. According to the Secret Service, Crooks fired multiple shots from an elevated position near the rally site before being killed by Secret Service agents.
A bullet pierced former President Trump’s right ear. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee called for unity on July 14, adding that he believed God saved his life. One rally attendee, Corey Comperatore, a firefighter and father of two, was killed in the attack. Another two were seriously injured.
“Disagreement is inevitable in American democracy. It’s part of human nature. But politics must never be a little battlefield and, God forbid, a killing field,” President Biden said during his Oval Office address.
By Emel Akan
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