Throughout the history of the United States, its presidents have faced numerous threats and attempts in their lives, reflecting the intense passions and divisions within the nation. From successful assassinations to thwarted plots, these incidents have left lasting impacts on American politics and security protocols.
The Lincoln Assassination (1865): One of the earliest and most significant presidential assassinations was that of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States.
On April 14, 1865, Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C.
The assassination was part of a larger conspiracy to decapitate the Union government. Lincoln succumbed to his injuries the following day, making him the first U.S. President to be assassinated.
The Garfield Assassination Attempt (1881): President James A. Garfield became the target of an assassination attempt on July 2, 1881, when he was shot by Charles J. Guiteau at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington, D.C.
Garfield died from complications of his wounds on September 19, 1881, after a prolonged and painful struggle. Guiteau’s motive was rooted in delusions of political influence.
The McKinley Assassination (1901): President William McKinley was shot on September 6, 1901, by Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist, during a public event at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. McKinley died eight days later from gangrene caused by his wounds. Czolgosz’s act highlighted the dangers posed by anarchist ideologies at the turn of the 20th century.
The Theodore Roosevelt Assassination Attempt (1912): Roosevelt was running for the White House as a former president when he was shot in Milwaukee. He survived the shooting, but the bullet remained in his chest for the rest of his life.
The Franklin Roosevelt Assassination Attempt (1933): Franklin Roosevelt was the target of an assassination attempt in Miami by an Italian immigrant, Giuseppe Zangara. Roosevelt was unharmed, but Anton Cermak, the mayor of Chicago, was killed in the attack.
The Kennedy Assassination (1963): Perhaps the most famous and shocking presidential assassination in modern history occurred on November 22, 1963, when President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed while riding in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas.
Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the crime but was himself assassinated before he could stand trial, fueling conspiracy theories that persist to this day.
The Robert F Kennedy Assassination (1968): The younger brother of John F Kennedy was campaigning for the Democratic nomination and had just won the 1968 California primary election. Right after he gave his victory speech, he was shot dead by Sirhan Sirhan. The killer was arrested and was sentenced to death. That was commuted to life in prison, and his petition for release in 2023 was denied.
The George Wallace Assassination Attempt (1972): Wallace was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination when he was shot during a campaign stop in Maryland. He was shot four times, and one of the bullets was lodged into his spinal column.
That left him paralyzed for the rest of his life. The man who shot him was Arthur Bremer. He was convicted and sentenced to prison. He was released in 2007.
The Gerald Ford Assassination Attempt (1975): Gerald Ford Escaped two assassination attempts within 17 days, both in California (in Sacramento and San Francisco) and both carried out by women Lynette Fromme and Sarah Jane Moore. They both received life sentences.
The Reagan Assassination Attempt (1981): On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. outside the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Reagan survived the attempt despite serious injuries. Hinckley’s motive was linked to an infatuation with actress Jodie Foster, leading to increased scrutiny of presidential security measures.
The Bill Clinton Assassination Attempt (1994) – President Clinton was inside the White House when Francisco Martin Duran fired at the building using a semiautomatic rifle.
Clinton was unharmed. Duran was convicted of attempting to assassinate the president and sentenced to 40 years in prison.
The George W Bush Assassination Attempt (2005) – President Bush was attending a rally in Tbilisi with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili when a man named Vladimir Arutyunian threw a hand grenade toward the podium. It did not explode, and no one was hurt. Arutyunian was sentenced to life in prison.
The Trump Assassination Attempt (2024): On July 13, 2024, Former President Donald Trump was rushed off stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, during a campaign rally after gunfire erupted, grazing the former President’s ear.
Donald Trump Jr. described the “scary” moments when he learned of the Saturday evening assassination attempt on his father, former President Donald Trump.
The president’s son told talk show host Joe Pagliarulo during a Sunday interview during a special broadcast of the “Joe Pags Show” that he had been taking some time off prior to the Republican convention when he learned of the attempt on his father’s life.
“I was with my children when I got a call, and no one really had any information. And I didn’t know what was going on,” Trump Jr. told Pagliarulo, adding later that the moments after the initial reports were “pretty scary times.”
The younger Trump then detailed how the former president was doing since the attack, and the former president’s reaction to the assassination attempt. Just after the shots were fired, former President Trump got up and pumped his fist, shouting “Fight!” multiple times as the rally attendees shouted “USA!”
Former Buffalo volunteer firefighter Corey Comperatore died at the rally protecting his family, according to a Facebook post by his family.
The other two victims are 57-year-old David Dutch and 74-year-old James Copenhaver, who are both in stable condition, the Pennsylvania state police said in a statement Sunday.
The 20-year-old shooter first came to law enforcement’s attention at Saturday’s rally when spectators noticed him acting strangely outside the campaign event. The tip sparked a frantic search, but officers were unable to find him before he managed to get on a roof, where he opened fire.
In the wake of the shooting that killed one spectator, investigators were hunting for any clues about what may have driven Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, to carry out the shocking attack.
The FBI said they were investigating it as a potential act of domestic terrorism. Still, the absence of a clear ideological motive by the man shot dead by the Secret Service led conspiracy theories to flourish.
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