Attorney General Merrick Garland called the attempted assassination of former President Trump a threat to democracy, calling it “extremely alarming” because the shooter was able to get so close to him.
“This should not happen in America. This type of security breach is not acceptable. This type of horrific attack on a former American president simply cannot continue. We have to make sure we stop this,” Garland said during a interview withNBC Nightly News with Lester Holtthe first since the July 13 shooting.
“This is extremely alarming. Democracy will not survive if people decide that the way they are going to get the results they want, or whatever other reason they may have, is by killing someone,” Garland added. “That’s why we have to find out what happened here, why it happened and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
The Justice Department, through the FBI, is investigating the shooting, during which Thomas Matthew Crooks fired bullets that grazed Trump’s ear, injured two other people and killed a man attending the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
During the interview, Garland also warned about the dangers associated with not accepting the election results – comments that come as Trump makes unsubstantiated claims about the legitimacy of the upcoming elections.
“This is a democracy, and in a democracy, people, as I said, argue with each other vehemently, they yell at each other, they disagree with each other, and then they vote. And that’s how we resolve issues,” Garland said.
“There will always be a winner and a loser… and that person’s supporters will always be upset. But in a democracy, we have to accept the results. Otherwise, democracy will not survive. I can say that America’s elections are the safest thing in the world.” planet and everyone has to accept this if our democracy is to survive.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
