Former President Donald Trump admitted that the two recent attempts on his life have him concerned about his family’s safety.
“I know you and your safety is with the Secret Service, but do you worry about your family too?” Fox News host Brian Kilmeade asked the former president ahead of a North Carolina campaign event.
“I do, I do. I don’t talk about it, but I do. I have to worry about family. I have to worry about everybody,” Trump said.
“I worry about you. I worry about everybody because look, we’re under siege and no country has ever suffered like we have for the last three and a half, almost four years,” he continued. The Republican nominee pointed to surging crime associated with illegal aliens, millions of whom are coming from dangerous countries plagued with crime and terrorism, as another point of worry for the country as a whole.
“When you have that happening at this city and this country, I do [worry]. I want to protect everybody.”
On September 15, Trump was the target of a second assassination attempt in just over 60 days while he was golfing at his West Palm Beach golf course.
Ryan Routh, 58, was apprehended after a Secret Service advance team spotted his sniper’s nest outside the golf course.
The former president’s round of golf was not listed on his public schedule at the time of the incident. Questions also remain surrounding Routh’s plan, as investigators do not currently believe the Hawaii resident had any familiarity with the course layout or the Palm Beach area.
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill that would increase security around all Secret Service protectees earlier this week. It would also mandate a thorough review of Secret Service procedures.
Elsewhere in Trump’s interview with Kilmeade, the Fox News host asked whether J.D. Vance will be treated fairly by moderators in his October 1 debate with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, which will be moderated by CBS News.
“He won’t get a fair shot,” Trump replied. “But he will handle it very good.”
He did express confidence in his running mate’s chances of victory, however. “I think he’s done great. People are really liking him. He’s tough, smart, he loves our country. He’s going to have no trouble.”