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Trump’s national lead over Biden grows — CBS News poll
When former President Donald Trump accepts the Republican nomination Thursday night, he’ll do so with his largest national lead over President Biden in the campaign thus far.
A slight majority, including some who aren’t voting for him, say Trump’s words in the days since the assassination attempt have been more unifying than divisive. Voters feel the same way about Mr. Biden’s response to the tragic events, too.
But it is Trump with the growing advantage in the vote. Trump is up five points nationally now, and three across the key battleground states. To put that national lead in context: it’s been 20 years since a Republican presidential candidate has won the national popular vote, and over 30 years since a Republican won by more than five.
The race across the battlegrounds moved one point more toward Trump today since we surveyed the battlegrounds last week.
For voters, Trump’s perceived handling of the assassination attempt is a net-positive reason to consider voting for him, but that effect is limited overall; for two-thirds, it has not changed their consideration calculus either way.
Of the candidates atop the party tickets, Trump is the one more voters feel fights “a lot” for people like them.
Amid the nomination debate on the Democratic side, Trump also leads Vice President Kamala Harris in a hypothetical matchup. There are at best marginal differences in how she and Mr. Biden currently run among demographic groups, such as younger voters and voters of color.
A still substantial part of his party feels Mr. Biden should step aside as nominee, and Democrats continue to lag behind Republicans on their expressed likelihood of turning out this year.
There is a bipartisan view — though particularly among Republicans — that the U.S. Secret Service could have done more to prevent the shooting on Saturday.
Mr. Biden also responded to the events, and most Americans also think he’s encouraged unity, including a third of Trump voters.
For all that, eight in 10 voters feel that civility in U.S. politics has gotten worse in recent years, and most expect an increase in political violence in the future.
JD Vance
The addition of Sen. JD Vance to the GOP ticket is being viewed positively by Republican voters: most are at least satisfied, and half are enthusiastic about the choice. This is particularly true among the MAGA wing of the party.
This CBS News/YouGov survey was conducted with a representative sample of 2,247 registered voters nationwide interviewed between July 16-18, 2024. The sample was weighted by gender, age, race, and education, based on the U.S. Census American Community Survey and Current Population Survey, as well as past vote. Respondents were selected to be representative of registered voters nationwide. The margin of error for registered voters is ±2.7 points. Battlegrounds are AZ GA MI NC NV PA WI.
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A picture is emerging of the suspect who officials say pointed a high-powered rifle at former president Donald Trump on a Florida golf course Sunday afternoon.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was armed with an AK-47-style rifle and was 300-500 yards away from Trump when members of the former president’s Secret Service detail spotted him, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. Routh was a few holes ahead of where the president was golfing at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, officials said.
Members of the Secret Service detail opened fire at Routh, according to law enforcement officials. It’s not clear if Routh fired any shots. Bradshaw said a witness saw a man jumping out of the bushes and fleeing in a black Nissan. The car was pulled over and the driver detained and identified as the suspect. Law enforcement found the rifle, a scope, two backpacks with ceramic tile and a GoPro camera in the bushes at the scene.
The FBI and U.S. Secret Service are investigating the incident, which the FBI said “appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump.”
As the investigation continues, here’s what we know about Routh:
Stephany Matat / AP
A decades-long criminal history
Routh’s most recent address is listed in Hawaii, but he spent most of his life in North Carolina, according to property records. Routh owned Camp Box Honolulu, a shed-building company, according to his LinkedIn profile. The account also says that he studied at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and graduated in 1998.
Records show his problems with the law go back to the 1990s and include less serious charges, like writing bad checks. But in 2002, he was charged with a felony — possession of a weapon of mass destruction — according to North Carolina Department of Corrections records.
Between 2002 and 2010, Routh was also charged with a number of misdemeanors, including a hit-and-run accident, resisting arrest and a concealed weapons violation, records show.
Suspect criticized Trump online
Routh voted Democratic in the 2024 primary election in North Carolina, and he voted in person, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections. He appears to be registered as an unaffiliated voter.
His X account, which has now been suspended, included a number of posts about Trump.
“@realDonaldTrump While you were my choice in 2106, I and the world hoped that president Trump would be different and better than the candidate, but we all were greatly disappointment and it seems you are getting worse and devolving,” he wrote in a June 2020 post. “I will be glad when you gone.”
He also referenced the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump in multiple posts, suggesting that President Biden and Vice President Harris should visit the injured and attend the funeral of the Pennsylvania rally-goer who was killed.
A Facebook account under Routh’s name was no longer online on Sunday evening.
Ukraine supporter
Routh was passionate about fighting for Ukraine, even traveling overseas to fight in the country’s war against Russia in 2022.
“I am coming to Ukraine from Hawaii to fight for your kids and families and democracy.. I will come and die for you,” he wrote on X.
In one post on LinkedIn, he shared a photo of himself in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital.
A CBS News review of Routh’s social media shows his pro-Ukraine views seeped into his public statements as well. He urged people, even those who didn’t have military skills, to take up arms for Ukraine. He was interviewed by several news organizations, including The New York Times and Semafor in 2023, and Newsweek Romania in 2022. He was quoted about his efforts to recruit volunteer fighters to aid Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion, though it wasn’t clear whether he had succeeded.
“This is about good versus evil,” he told Newsweek Romania.
contributed to this report.
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