One of Donald Trump's vice presidential shortlisters was scorched by political experts and onlookers on Saturday after the GOP lawmaker put the blame for the rally shooting attempt at the feet of President Joe Biden.
Trump earlier in the day appeared to be shot in the ear as he addressed a rally in Pennsylvania. The former president was tackled by U.S. Secret Service agents, who have been criticized for their response to the emergency threat.
Trump's statement from his social media site focused on the fact that such an event shouldn't occur in the U.S., while Senator J.D. Vance had a different take on it.
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Vance stated on social media that the shooting "is not just some isolated incident."
"The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs," he claimed on Saturday. "That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination."
Gregg Nunziata, executive director of the Society for the Rule of Law, called Vance's statement "extremely unhelpful, reckless, and dishonest."
"It turns up the heat and invites retribution," he added over the weekend. "We should demand better from our leaders."
Norman Ornstein — who is an emeritus scholar at the Koch-funded American Enterprise Institute — said that Vance "is not a leader."
"He is a pandering, cowardly, disgraceful lickspittle to Trump and and Putin," he said Saturday. "That he would say this is a true reflection of who he is."
@JDCocchiarella, a Democrat, said, "F--- JD Vance and this disingenuous and dangerous statement."
Vance's statement comes after another GOP lawmaker, Mike Collins, got himself in hot water by stating that President Joe Biden himself had ordered the shot at Trump.
