‘A sad moment for America.’ Central WA candidates react to Trump assassination plot
Congressional candidates running in Central Washington reacted over the weekend to news of an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a Saturday campaign stop in Butler, PA.
Dan Newhouse, the representative for Washington’s 4th Congressional District, called the action “appalling” and said it “has no place in American politics.”
“I am grateful President Trump’s injuries are not serious, and hold him and his family in our prayers. I offer my thanks to the law enforcement officers whose swift response saved lives,” he said in a Saturday evening post to X/Twitter.
The five-term Republican incumbent is facing a primary challenge from seven other candidates, including two Trump-aligned Republicans — Tiffany Smiley and Jerrod Sessler — who want to see Newhouse ousted over his 2021 vote to impeach the former president.
Ballots go out this week for the Aug. 6 primary election.
On Sunday, a 20-year-old gunman tried to assassinate the former president during a rally in a rural town in northwest Pennsylvania. The assailant reportedly shot several times from atop a roof about 150 meters away the stage, piercing Trump’s right ear, critically injuring two attendees and killing a former fire chief, according to The Associated Press.
Smiley, a Republican from Pasco, said in a Sunday statement that she was praying for Trump, the victims and their families.
“Our president showed extraordinary courage under fire, and I’m thankful God protected him,” she said. “President Trump’s work for our country is not done and I look forward to him becoming the 47th president of the United States in November. We will not fear, but rise together because we live in the greatest country on earth.”
Sessler, the Prosser Republican who earned Trump’s endorsement earlier this year, posted on X/Twitter shortly after hear of the shooting in Butler.
“The weirdos need to understand that god used @realDonaldTrump to uncork the truth about the open attacks on our great America and we will never back down,” he wrote. “Pray for our favorite president and American hero.’
Birdie Jane Muchlinski, a Democrat from Richland who also is challenging Newhouse, called it “a sad moment for America.”
“At no point should we witness violence towards our political leaders, no matter the disagreement,” she wrote in a Sunday post to Facebook. “As our political climate continues to escalate and harm being inflicted upon another’s loved one, leaders should stand to diffuse, deescalate and truthfully deliver messages of hope and comfort.”
She also thanked the Secret Service and called on the public to “avoid theories and allow investigators to do their best work.”
“We are praying for Mr. Trump and his family. Please remember this man is still a father, a husband and a grandfather,” Muchlinski wrote.
The Fourth Congressional District encompasses central Washington, stretching from the U.S.-Canada border down to the Columbia River. It includes Omak, East Wenatchee, Moses Lake, Yakima, the Yakama Indian Reservation and the Tri-Cities.
The Cook Partisan Voting Index rated Washington’s Fourth Congressional District R+11 in 2023, meaning it’s strong Republican-leaning district.
