The history of successful and unsuccessful presidential assassination attempts is tied together by threads of lone gunmen and conspiracy theories. The phenomenon, though highlighted by the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on the campaign trail, isn’t new.
Donald Trump
On July 13, gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at a Trump rally, killing Pennsylvania resident Corey Comperatore and clipping the former president in the ear.
Crooks fired from the top of a nearby building, which was allegedly outside of the security perimeter set up by the Secret Service, according to a statement the Secret Service gave NBC. The building was meant to be guarded by local police.
The motives of the shooter are still unknown — a notable difference from historical presidential assassination attempts. Those close to Crooks knew of no strong political leanings, according to CNN. However, Crooks was a registered Republican, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State.
Attempted assassinations have mixed impacts on presidential approval ratings and electability.
Thus far, the attempt on Trump’s life has had no significant impact on his polling numbers. President Joe Biden was in a statistical tie with former President Trump among registered voters following the shooting and Trump’s selection of running mate Republican Senator J.D. Vance, as of July 16 research by Ipsos and Reuters.
Ronald Reagan
On March 31, 1981, John W. Hinckley Jr. shot then-President Ronald Reagan in Washington. Hinckley’s motivations were not political; he was driven by a desire to impress actress Jodie Foster, according to the University of Missouri - Kansas City. Hinckley Jr. had developed a fixation on the movie “Taxi Driver,” the plot of which revolves around an assassination attempt.
In archival footage from NBC, reporters describe the scene as chilling and frantic. Reporters said that Reagan’s condition was good, and as he was being wheeled into the hospital, Reagan said to the doctors, “Please tell me you’re Republicans.”
The doctor, a liberal Democrat, responded: “Today, Mr. President, we are all Republicans” — a show of solidarity and support not always seen in the aftermath of presidential assassination attempts.
The Daily Lobo ran an article about the incident the same day.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
“The shooting stunned the world and a nation whose citizens seem unable to shake the stigma of seemingly mindless murder of public figures,” the article reads.
The event garnered public sympathy for Reagan, with his ratings rising eight points, according to GZERO.
Theodore Roosevelt
On October 14, 1912, John Schrank shot former president Theodore Roosevelt in the chest in Milwaukee.
The bullet was slowed by a folded manuscript, a steel-enforced eyeglass case and an overcoat, according to History.
“I don’t know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot,” Roosevelt said before holding up the bullet-riddled manuscript, as described by History.
He then continued to give an hour-long speech, reading from the same manuscript.
When his supporters swarmed the shooter, Roosevelt stopped them from harming him.
Schrank’s principal motive was to prevent Roosevelt from winning a third term, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Schrank was concerned by a dream he had in which President William McKinley – who preceded Roosevelt and was assassinated in 1901 – told him Roosevelt was responsible for his death.
Like in Trump’s case, this assassination attempt may have helped project a “tough guy image” for Roosevelt, as described by U.S. News & World Report.
Both attempts were also catalysts for backlash toward the media.
Supporters of Trump blamed the media for portraying the former president as a threat to democracy, according to CNN.
After the assassination attempt, Roosevelt said, “It is a very natural thing that weak and vicious minds should be inflamed to acts of violence by the kind of awful mendacity and abuse that have been heaped upon me for the last three months by the papers.”
Roosevelt eventually lost the election to Woodrow Wilson.
John F. Kennedy
On November 22, 1963, Lee Harvey Oswald fired at then-President John F. Kennedy while he was in a presidential motorcade in Dallas. Kennedy was hit by two bullets and later died in the hospital. The assassination followed a failed attempt three years earlier, according to Politico.
Oswald hit three other victims that day: a police officer, who was killed, and two other bystanders, who were injured, according to History.
Kennedy’s assassination was the first time people witnessed a president being killed on television, which, as Encyclopedia Britannica explained, “made it a uniquely immediate and shocking experience for many Americans.”
The killing of Kennedy also helped “fuel a climate of mistrust in the 1960s,” according to Time Magazine. It was followed by the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy.
The Daily Lobo ran an article five days after Kennedy’s death in which Oswald was described as “a self-professed Marxist.”
Oswald’s motive is still unknown, according to Time Magazine. And though the Warren Commission revealed that Oswald acted alone, many Americans believe there were other parties involved.
In October 2023, 57% of college graduates believed that there was a conspiracy involved in the Kennedy assassination, according to a Gallup Poll.
Similarly, as Vox reported, the Trump assassination attempt has drawn suspicion toward the Secret Service.
Addison Fulton is the culture editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com
Shin Thant Hlaing is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com
