Trump second assassination attempt live: Suspect Ryan Routh in court as Trump breaks silence

Donald Trump was the subject of a second apparent assassination attempt at one of his golf courses in Florida on Sunday, the FBI has said.

The former president is safe and unharmed and the bureau says it is investigating the latest security episode involving the Republican presidential nominee, just nine weeks after he survived a previous attempt on his life when he was shot in the ear by a sniper at a rally in Pennsylvania.

A man was spotted aiming an AK-47-type rifle at Trump’s West Palm Beach golf resort while concealed in shrubbery about 400 to 500 yards away from the politician when he was spotted by Secret Service agents who opened fire as he fled the scene.

He was later stopped in a Nissan SUV by police and taken into custody in a neighboring county, according to local sheriff Ric Bradshaw.

The suspect has since been named as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, who is believed to have criticised Trump on social media and expressed his willingness to “fight and die” in Ukraine, a cause in which he appears to have been intensely invested.

Routh is currently appearing in court in West Palm Beach to face charges.

The Republican presidential nominee said this to Fox News Digital earlier, alluding to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris calling him a “threat to democracy” (he has said himself that he plans to be “a dictator on day one” and discussing tearing up the US Constitution but hey ho...).

“These are people that want to destroy our country,” Trump told Fox.

“It is called the enemy from within. They are the real threat.”

Don Jr has likewise been taking up this line and Doug Collins and others have taken to the same network to blame “liberal name calling” for the threats against Trump, as though no MAGA conservative would ever dream