Trump shot?

[FlyingClayDisk]

One thing I noticed is all the various video clips make it seem like significant time passed before the snipers took him out, but it actually happened very fast. I think a lot of the criticism of the various law enforcement involved is really overblown. I guess it's natural to look for people to blame, but in the end only the shooter is responsible. Whether anyone else was involved is a question mark.

My initial take is that the shooter was working alone and clearly in need of some kind of psychiatric treatment. He's within the age when the first signs of being a sociopath show up. 16 to 25 I think. It's not only possible he worked alone it's likely.

130 yards is nothing with pretty much any hunting rifle with a good scope. To shoot within a quarter at that range is reasonable for a person familiar with their weapon. 300 yards a hand-spread. The choice of using an AR kind of guarantee's he was not experienced beyond that weapon. Any good big-game rifle would have been a far better choice. His choice of weapon I think played a part in his near miss thank God.

I can only pray that clear heads prevail and this is the only incident like this in this election. I heard someone last night mention that 37 candidates were gunned down in Mexico's last elections. We are better than that and Mexico should serve as a good example that using force does not work. It's truly sad that shooter did not get help before he snapped.

A 130 meter shot with even iron sites is a slam dunk if you've ever fired one of these firearms, especially a .223 or 5.56 NATO.  I can hit a 12" plate at 130 meters all day long.  With a scope is both easier, and harder, depending on your experience.  So, two things here:

1. The shooter was observed before the shooting.  He wasn't just observed, he was observed with what clearly appeared to be a rifle.  So, to your point, the incident ended quickly with the SS counter-sniper team after the shooter fired the first shot.  GOOD!  They really couldn't fire before he fired, BUT law enforcement SHOULD have been on the case before this point.  AND, this is the reason the local LEO's were asked to augment the less than adequate SS detail.  Yes, there were two counter-sniper teams from the SS on site, plus local SWAT resources.  I have no idea of the local SWAT level of training, but generally it is good to excellent.  However, SWAT did not take the shooter out, the SS counter-sniper team did.  Draw your own conclusions from this.

2. The shooter was apparently engaged by a local LEO shortly before his first shot.  This equals "stress", and stress on a shooter equals inaccuracy.  Accuracy involves concentration, breathing and control.  Adrenaline detracts from this.  The shooter fired (seemingly) (3) shots in slow succession.  The following (3) quick succession shots are from the counter-sniper team (likely one shooter).  The SS sniper took one center-mass shot, one heat shot, and a 3rd center mass shot.  This is by the book.  The first two shots may have been reversed, depending on his vantage point.  First shot takes the shooter out of the fight, second shot kills him, and third shot is insurance.  All in less than 2 seconds.  THAT is a sniper.  What the shooter did was, take aim, fire once, adjust, fire again, and then fire wildly a 3rd time.  The last shot hit the hydraulics of the boom lift holding the speakers for the event.  The shooter was likely shocked by the sound of the first round, but remained composed enough for a follow up shot, but by the third shot reality was soaking in (doesn't take long in the human brain).  He realized by this point he had just committed a grave act and he likely would not survive (and thankfully he did not).  By his 3rd shot he was likely thinking about escape (which wasn't going to happen).

In a combat role, a true "sniper" will rarely take more than one shot, but this wasn't a combat situation.  The counter-snipers had no reason to believe they would be targeted, thus their firing multiple shots.  Their job was to neutralize the shooter...period.  And, this is what they did.  Albeit very LATE in the evolution.

What's disappointing is the LEO who engaged the shooter and then retreated.  I don't know the exact time stamps, but allegedly it was upwards of 1 minute before the shooting.  The local LEO immediately retreated (understandably), but for whatever reason, the SS were not notified immediately and the shooting occurred.  I don't have an explanation for this lapse, but by any standard, it is just that...a lapse.  I don't believe this to be a "conspiracy", but rather a lapse in communication and a tragic comedy of errors.  I also believe that if Trump would have had a full contingent of SS like he is entitled to (but for the democrats), this may have not happened.  Furthermore, if Trump wouldn't have turned his head when he did, this would be a completely different post with a much more tragic outcome.

I can tell you this much...if Biden would have been on that stage, the shooter would have never gotten a shot off!  Absolute certain about this.  The SS counter-sniper teams are some of the best trained personnel out there, many of them former special forces snipers.  They know where a shooter will be, and they set up to take that shooter out of the equation BEFORE they can act.  BUT...it wasn't Biden...it was Trump.

So, you draw your conclusions.  These are just the facts as I understand them, along with my understanding of operations and firearms.

Take it for what you will.

Edit - Some corrections.  I've been reviewing about everything I can find and it seems now the shooter fired (8) shots, not (3).  Additionally, there seems to now be question whether it was really a SS counter-sniper team who neutralized the shooter, or if it was a local law enforcement counter-sniper unit.  I guess the point here is, had this been the revered Obama, or even Biden...this shooter would have never gotten off a shot.  So, why was this allowed to happen.  Again, I don't think there was some conspiracy to "let" it happen, but I also think Trump's security has been compromised by underfunding, and the democrats trying to remove security from him for exactly the reasons that happened the other night.  Bottom line...there is NO excuse for this, not for anyone, regardless of ideology...EVER!