STORY: :: Biden calls for Americans to 'cool it down'
after assassination attempt on Trump
:: July 14, 2024
:: Joe Biden, U.S. President
"Yesterday's shooting at Donald Trump's rally in Pennsylvania calls on all of us to take a step back, take stock of where we are, how we go forward from here."
:: Washington, D.C.
"There's no place in America for this kind of violence or for any violence ever. Period. No exceptions. We cannot allow this violence to be normalized. You know, the political rhetoric in this country has gotten very heated. It's time to cool down. We all have a responsibility to do that. Yes, we have deeply felt strong disagreements. The stakes in this election are enormously high."
"No violence on our streets. That's how democracy should work. We compare and contrast the character of the candidates, the records, the issues, the agenda, the vision for America, but in America, we resolve our differences at the ballot box."
It was Biden's third use of the formal setting of the Oval Office to comment on issues of major importance to Americans since he took power in 2021.
Biden's appearance allowed him to demonstrate the power of incumbency, an important symbolic image as he battles some in his own Democratic Party who want the 81-year-old leader to step aside from seeking re-election out of concerns he lacks the mental acuity for another four-year term.
Gun violence is a fact of life in the United States. However, political violence is far rarer. Four U.S. presidents have been assassinated and several escaped assassination attempts. Multiple presidential candidates have been shot, some fatally.
