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Ryan Routh, armed man arrested on Trump's golf course, posted a lot about Trump and politics

The man was arrested in Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, posted numerous messages on social media about world events and politics on Sunday afternoon and had at least 100 clashes with police, public records show.

Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was arrested Sunday after allegedly pushing the muzzle of an AK-47 through the chain-link fence outside Trump's golf course. Trump was not injured in the incident and was safely escorted out of the area, officials and the campaign team reported Sunday.

Ryan Routh shortly after his arrest

Ryan Routh is accused of pointing an AK-47 at former President Trump on Sunday as he played golf at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. The incident is being investigated as a second assassination attempt on Trump.

According to a background check conducted by Fox Digital, Routh currently lives in Hawaii after spending most of his life in North Carolina, where he worked in the construction industry and owned a company called United Roofing, among other things.

Fox News Digital searched the suspect's alleged social media accounts on Sunday afternoon and found that he made numerous posts about Trump, the war in Ukraine, the 2020 election and other world events.

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Trump assassination West Palm Beach Ryan Routh PoliceTrump assassination West Palm Beach Ryan Routh Police

Sheriff's vehicles are seen near the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, after gunshots were reported near Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump.

“I consider myself fortunate to have been born in America, with freedom and opportunity, and hope not to waste something so precious; that I can do more and take less,” says Routh in his biography, apparently written on an X-account.

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In 2020, during the presidential primaries, the X-account said: “I didn't support Bernie, but now I do; because sleepy Joe stands for nothing; no plans, no ideas, just as weak as Hillary. Bernie… is giving them hell… fighting to the death…”

The account also commented on Trump's assassination attempt in July and called on Vice President Kamala Harris to visit those injured at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania because “Trump will never do anything for them.”

Law enforcement sources identify Ryan Wesley Routh as suspect in Trump shooting

“You and Biden should visit the injured at the Trump rally in the hospital and attend the funeral of the murdered firefighter. Trump will never do anything for them… show the world what compassion and humanity mean,” he said in a July 17 reply message to Harris' account.

“You should visit the victims of the Trump rally in the hospital and attend the funeral of the deceased firefighter; Trump would certainly never do that. SHOW THE WORLD WHAT REAL LEADERS DO,” he wrote in another X-response to President Biden.

In another X-post on April 22, Routh appeared to quote a phrase commonly used in the Harris campaign when he declared, “DEMOCRACY is on the ballot, and we cannot lose.”

“Your campaign should be called something like KADAF. Keep America democratic and free. Trump's should be called MASA… make Americans slaves again. DEMOCRACY is on the ballot and we cannot lose. We cannot afford to fail. The world is counting on us to lead the way,” the account posted before Biden dropped out of the race in July and Harris rose to the top of the Democratic ticket.

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Trump assassination West Palm Beach Ryan Routh PoliceTrump assassination West Palm Beach Ryan Routh Police

Sheriff's vehicles are seen near the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, after gunshots were reported near Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump.

The X account, which appears to belong to Routh, also said that Trump was his “choice” in 2016 before he completely backed out in the 2020 election.

“When you were my choice in 2016, I and the world hoped that President Trump would be different and better than the nominee, but we were all very disappointed and it seems you are getting worse and regressing. Are you retarded? I'll be glad when you're gone,” he posted on June 11, 2020.

X's account, which apparently belongs to Routh, has also been used to repeatedly send messages related to the war in Ukraine. For example, he posted on X that he was ready to fly to Ukraine to fight against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I'm flying to Ukraine to fight. We need to launch a media campaign to encourage everyone around the world to gather in Ukraine and join the fight. We need hundreds of thousands of civilians to drive up the cost of the war for Putin and a flood of fighters,” he posted on February 17, 2022.

After declaring his intention to fight for Ukraine in several messages, he posted in April that he was in Kyiv.

“I am here in Kyiv and want to use Independence Park to set up a tent city with all the foreigners living here and encourage thousands more foreign civilians to come and support Ukraine,” the account said.

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Last year, the New York Times published an article titled “Stolen Valor: The US Volunteers in Ukraine Who Lie, Waste and Bicker,” which also quoted a man named Ryan Routh, described as a former construction worker from North Carolina who traveled to Ukraine.

Routh, the news agency reported, was looking for Afghan soldiers who had fled the Taliban to fight in Ukraine. “Mr. Routh, who spent several months in Ukraine last year, said he planned to bring them, in some cases illegally, to Ukraine from Pakistan and Iran. He said dozens had expressed interest,” the news agency reported.

“We can probably buy some passports through Pakistan because it is such a corrupt country,” he told the New York Times in an interview last year.

A background check conducted by Fox News Digital revealed that Ryan Wesley Routh had repeated run-ins with police in North Carolina over decades.

Most of the arrests were for simple possession, driving without a license, driving with an expired registration and driving without insurance.

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In 2002, the Greensboro News & Record reported that Ryan Routh was arrested after barricading himself in the United Roofing office in a three-hour standoff.

Routh had been stopped by police during a traffic stop but put his hand on a gun, prompting him to drive to United Roofing and barricade himself inside the building, the newspaper reported at the time. He was arrested without incident after the standoff.

Donald TrumpDonald Trump

He was accused carry a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon of mass destruction, resisting, delaying and obstructing a police officer and driving without a license. State records show he was sentenced to probation in that case.

Background documents show that Ryan Routh is divorced and moved from North Carolina to Hawaii around 2017.

A LinkedIn profile apparently belonging to Routh shows that he now owns and operates a construction company called Camp Box Honolulu. The account describes the company as a company that “builds simple, low-cost buildings to address the highest homelessness rate in the United States due to unprecedented gentrification.”

“Having passed on my meager remains in North Carolina and moved to Oahu, I am currently building very simple housing structures for the less fortunate and pursuing a wide range of other creative projects developing unique products and devices as well as community improvement projects. I am constantly looking for opportunities to collaborate that will have the greatest public impact to improve our society. I would be immensely happy to be invited to join a monumental, worthy cause to create real change in our world. I am certainly free to relocate to any remote location on the planet that could have the most positive impact or create something unique and magical just around the corner,” the LinkedIn page said.

His previous business, United Roofing, received one-star reviews on Yelp, including a 2016 review that said, “As a military member looking to purchase a home before returning from deployment, the owner, Ryan Routh, berated me for trying to purchase a home lot without seeing it, as many military members returning from overseas do.”

Trump debates with HarrisTrump debates with Harris

A prominent pro-life group is unhappy with ABC News debate moderator Linsey Davis and her fact-checking of former President Trump.

The FBI described the arrest on Sunday as “an apparent attempted assassination of former President Trump.”

Routh was reportedly armed with an AK-47 and was able to push the muzzle of his weapon through the chain-link fence outside the Florida golf club, authorities said. He was about 300 to 500 feet from Trump. The Secret Service spotted Routh and opened fire, authorities said.

Routh fled, but was later stopped and arrested by authorities.

Shortly after the incident, Trump assured his supporters and the public that he was fine and safe.

“There was a shooting near me, but before the rumor mill gets out of control, I want you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND I AM FINE!” he wrote in a campaign message. “Nothing will stop me. I will NEVER SURRENDER.”

In July, Trump was nearly assassinated during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Trump suffered an ear injury in the shooting at the rally, one rally participant was fatally shot and two others were injured.

Get the latest updates on the 2024 election, exclusive interviews and more in our digital election hub, Fox News.

Source of the original article: Ryan Routh, armed man arrested on Trump's golf course, posted a lot about Trump and politics