U.S. House Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, says former President Donald Trump would not have been unprotected during the campaign rally where a shooter fired at him even if a bill he introduced earlier this year to strip Secret Service protection from convicted and imprisoned felons had become law.
Several Republicans have heavily criticized or even called for the congressman to resign since the shooting, citing the bill that Thompson introduced in April. Trump, whom a New York jury convicted on 34 state felony charges in May, could potentially face a prison sentence.
“Bennie Thompson—the Mississippi congressman who tried to strip President Trump of Secret Service protection … should resign TODAY,” Republican Mississippi State Auditor Shad White wrote in a social media post on Sunday, July 14.
U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, an Ohio Republican, also called on Thompson to resign just two days before Trump named him as his vice presidential running mate.
“Remember this? I do,” Vance said in a July 13 post, sharing Thompson’s April 19 statement in which he announced the bill to strip Secret Service protections from convicted felons serving prison time. “Kick his ass out of Congress. Absolute scumbag.”
In a statement his office shared with the Mississippi Free Press on Tuesday morning, Thompson said his bill would not have made a difference even if it had been law at the time of the rally.
“My bill would not have affected the Secret Service’s presence during this tragic event. It aims to clarify lines of authority when a protectee is sentenced to prison and is in the custody of another law enforcement agency,” the congressman said. “That does not apply to the former President.”
Thompson also faced criticism from Republicans over a deleted Facebook post after the shooting at Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
The Mississippi Republican Party’s official social media channels and others shared screenshots of the post by a field director for Thompson. “I don’t condone violence but please get you some shooting lessons so you don’t miss next time ooops that wasn’t me talking,” the July 13 post in the screenshot said.
Thompson told Fox News on Sunday that he had fired the staffer.
“I was made aware of a post made by a staff member and she is no longer in my employment,” said the congressman, who represents Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District, including most of Jackson and the Mississippi Delta.
After the violent insurrection where Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Thompson served as the Chair of the House January 6th Committee, which ultimately recommended federal criminal charges against Trump, including for inciting an insurrection.
In the immediate aftermath of the July 13 shooting, which left one Trump supporter dead and the Republican candidate himself with a minor ear injury, the Mississippi Democrat spoke out against political violence. The motives of the shooter remain unclear, however.
“There is no room in American democracy for political violence. I am grateful for law enforcement’s fast response to this incident,” Thompson said in a tweet. “I am glad the former President is safe, and my thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved.”
Only in a Mississippi Free Press story is an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate described as a "shooting" with a "minor ear injury." Keep going! You're doing great!