Joe Biden says Secret Service needs more help after Trump targeted in apparent assassination attempt
US President Joe Biden has said the Secret Service needs more help after Donald Trump was targeted in an apparent assassination attempt on Sunday.
Mr Biden said he was thankful Mr Trump was “OK” before adding he did not yet have a full report of what happened.
He added: “One thing I want to make clear is that the service needs more help and I think Congress should respond to their needs.”
When asked what extra help the service needs, Mr Biden said it might need to be considered whether the service needs “more personnel or not”.
He made the remarks after the FBI said an “apparent assassination attempt” on Mr Trump was thwarted on Sunday, with a man arrested and an assault rifle recovered.
Mr Trump was playing a round at Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach in Florida when gunshots were heard.
It is not yet known whether the suspect fired first, fired a round at all or if only the Secret Service fired.
Follow latest: Suspect detained after ‘running out of bushes’
The former US president was on the fifth hole when he was tackled to the ground by security agents fearing an attempt on his life.
The fifth hole in the north-eastern corner of the golf course is just over 300 metres (328 yards) from the southern perimeter fence.
The course is lined with thick foliage, but satellite images show the area between the fence and the approximate point Mr Trump had reached on the course is mostly open water and grass – with the sightline potentially blocked by some trees bordering the lake.
Agent spotted rifle barrel poking out if fence
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters that a Secret Service agent, who was patrolling the course ahead of Mr Trump, spotted a rifle barrel coming out of a perimeter fence.
“He immediately engaged that individual, at which time the individual took off,” he said.
Mr Bradshaw said Mr Trump was about 300 to 500 yards (275 to 460m) from the suspect, named as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, at the time.
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Trump ‘apparent assassination bid’ timeline
Dave Aronberg, Palm Beach County’s state attorney, told MSNBC the suspect was “lying in wait” for Mr Trump.
“We are not sure right now if the individual was able to take a shot at our agents”, Rafael Barros, special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Miami field office, has told a news conference.
Ryan Routh pictured as he is arrested. Pic: Martin County Sheriff’s Office
Routh fled in a black Nissan SUV and was arrested after his vehicle was stopped by local police, Sky News’s US partner network NBC News reported, citing three senior law enforcement officials.
He was stopped by police driving northbound on the I-95 highway, about 46 miles and a 43-minute drive from the golf course.
The southern perimeter fence runs along Summit Boulevard, where a police cordon was put up and officers were seen searching the bushes bordering the golf course.
Officers later searched the area where the man, believed to be Routh, was spotted and found an AK-47-style rifle with a scope, two rucksacks and a GoPro.
Suspect Ryan Routh. Pic: Ryan Routh/Facebook
Earlier, Martin County Sheriff William Snyder described how his officers followed the suspect’s vehicle for a while before making a “felony stop”.
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Footage of Trump’s assassination suspect
Pictures of the gun and rucksacks were displayed at the news conference
He said: “Our road units picked the vehicle up and we waited a while. We didn’t stop him right away. We didn’t want a high-speed chase.
“So we were able to wait until we had adequate units, surrounded the vehicle, and forced it to a stop.”
He added they managed to take the suspect into custody peacefully.
Routh has since appeared in a federal courtroom in West Bank Palm Beach, Florida.
Read more:
What we know about what happened so far
Urgent question over how ‘assassination attempt’ may affect election – analysis
Police vehicles are pictured near Trump International Golf Club. Pic: AP
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Trump says, ‘he will never surrender’
Afterwards, a statement from Mr Trump said: “There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumours start spiralling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL!
“Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me.
“Unity. Peace. Make America Great Again. May God bless you.”
Mr Trump’s motorcade heading to Mar-a-Lago after the incident
Mr Trump has since returned to his Mar-a-Lago resort.
A White House statement said after the incident: “The president and vice president have been briefed about the security incident at the Trump International Golf Course, where former president Trump was golfing.
“They are relieved to know that he is safe. They will be kept regularly updated by their team.”
Ryan Routh pictured in 2022 during a rally for support of Ukraine, at the Independence Square in Kyiv.
Pic: Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine Suspilne/Reuters
What do we know about the suspect?
Routh is reported to have travelled to Ukraine in an attempt to help the country in its fight against Russia.
A video has emerged of an interview he gave to Newsweek in 2022 where he spoke about his efforts to recruit foreign volunteers for Ukraine’s ground forces.
It has also emerged Routh wrote a book about the conflict where he described how he “gave up and quit”, a decision he says makes him “the worst of humans”.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports that public records show Routh faced criminal charges over two separate incidents in 2002 for possession of a weapon of mass destruction – which can refer to a machine gun.
He pleaded guilty to the first charge in April 2002, but no other details were publicly available, according to the newspaper.
The News & Record reported that later that year he was also charged after barricading himself in a United Roofing building in Greensboro for three hours, armed with a machine gun.
The incident began after he was pulled over for a traffic stop, but police eventually arrested him without incident.
In that case, he is said to have pleaded guilty to driving without a licence and registration, resisting a public officer and carrying a concealed firearm – while public records reportedly indicate the weapon of mass destruction charge was dropped.
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Sky’s Mark Stone reports from outside the golf course in Florida where a suspect was seen with a gun
According to records, Routh lived in North Carolina for most of his life before moving to Kaaawa, Hawaii, in 2018, the Associated Press reported.
In relation to the incident at Mr Trump’s golf course on Sunday, Routh’s son has told CNN that he hopes “everything has been blown out of proportion” and that it would be unlike his father to “do anything crazy, much less violent”.
Oran Routh said: “Ryan is my father, and I don’t have any comment beyond a character profile of him as a loving and caring father, and honest, hardworking man… He’s a good father, and a great man, and I hope you can portray him in an honest light.”
It comes two months after Mr Trump sustained an ear injury during an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania in July.
The gunman, who was identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot dead by the Secret Service at the scene.
The attempt on Mr Trump’s life led to the resignation of Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle, who admitted to Congress that her agency had its “most significant operational failure” in decades.
Democrats have shared more pictures from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate, a day before the government’s deadline for the full release.
The 68 photos published on Thursday are among more than 95,000 images that the House Oversight Committee Democrats said they were reviewing.
They said the images were “selected to provide the public with transparency into a representative sample of the photos” and to “provide insights into Epstein’s network and his extremely disturbing activities”.
Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
But the Democrats added that they are still analysing thousands more images that are “both graphic and mundane”.
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on the part of those pictured in the images – and the context surrounding the photos is not known.
Mystery text quotes price for ‘girl’
The latest cache includes a text message appearing to discuss the price for a girl.
It isn’t clear who sent the messages and to whom, but the screenshot shows some details on an unidentified girl, described as a teenager here.
“I will send u girls now,” one of the texts read.
Pic: @OversightDems
Writing on body
Several pictures show handwritten messages on a person’s body.
One appears to be quoting the opening paragraph of the book Lolita – which can be seen in the background of the picture.
The book was written by Vladimir Nabokov and tells the story of a girl groomed by a middle-aged literature professor.
Another shows writing on a foot, which reads: “She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock.”
The writing appears to be quoting the opening paragraph of the book Lolita. Pic: @OversightDems
Another handwritten message. Pic: @OversightDems
Other messages can be seen on the neck, hip, back and chest, with the latter reading: “The tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down”.
In a different image, Epstein is pictured with three girls in his house in New York. One appears to be touching Epstein’s chest, one is holding her wrist up and another is looking at a laptop.
The identity of the women has been hidden.
Epstein with three women whose faces have been redacted. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein with high-profile figures
Some high-profile figures also appear in the newly released images, with one showing Epstein sitting alongside Sheikh Jabor Bin Yousef Bin Jassim Bin Jabor al Thani.
He is the chairman and director of several privately established companies and is a member of the Qatari royal family.
Epstein with Sheikh Jabor Bin Yousef Bin Jassim Bin Jabor al Thani. Pic: @OversightDems
Another image shows Epstein with the former president of the UN General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, who held the role between 2017 and 2018. He is also a former Slovakian foreign affairs minister.
Last month, he told TASR news agency: “The reopening of the Epstein case occurred after I left New York, and the full extent of his inexcusable actions, which I strongly condemn, only came to light after his arrest.”
Miroslav Lajcak, former president of the UN General Assembly, next to Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
Shaher Abdulhak, a deceased Yemeni billionaire businessman whose son is a suspect in the murder of a Norwegian woman in Mayfair, was also pictured with Epstein.
His son, Farouk Abdulhak, fled to Yemen after the rape and death of Martine Vik Magnussen in March 2008 and has been wanted for questioning ever since.
Ms Magnussen was found dead among rubble in a basement in Great Portland Street.
She and her friends had been celebrating finishing their end-of-term exams at the Maddox nightclub before she vanished. Her body was found two days later.
Deceased Yemeni billionaire Shaher Abdulhak with Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein and Steve Bannon. Pic: @OversightDems
Also featured in the newly released images were former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, magician David Blaine, businessman Tom Pritzker, billionaire Bill Gates, director Woody Allen, talk show host Dick Cavett, Trump ally Steve Bannon, and Kuwait’s former information minister Anas al Rasheed.
Photos of identity documents with redacted names were also published, including one with text saying that “the bearer was convicted of a sex offense against a minor”, which could belong to convicted sex offender Epstein.
Also among the identification documents is a heavily redacted Russian passport. It belongs to a female, but other information has been blocked out.
The release also includes ID documents from the Czech Republic, South Africa, Ukraine, and Lithuania.
One passport appeared to belong to someone ‘convicted of a sex offense against a minor’. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein’s passport. Pic: @OversightDems
Deadline looming
The picture drop came a day before the deadline set by a bipartisan bill that compels the US Justice Department to release the Epstein files within 30 days, which was signed into law by US President Donald Trump last month.
Mr Trump had promised to release the Epstein files during his ultimately successful presidential campaign, but he later made a U-turn, even going as far as calling the Epstein files a Democratic “hoax”, before eventually changing path again to sign the bill.
House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said ahead of the deadline that he believes the Department of Justice will release the files in time, and warned that there will be “strong bipartisan pushback” if they don’t.
“Based on my conversations with some of the top Democrats who’ve been working on this matter, related to full and complete disclosure of the Epstein files, we do expect compliance,” he told reporters on Thursday.
Full release going ‘down to the wire’
National security lawyers inside the Department of Justice are “working down to the wire” as Friday’s deadline for the full release of the Epstein files edges closer, according to Sky News’ US correspondent James Matthews.
He said those lawyers are mulling “how much is actually divulged in these documents”.
“There will be redactions… the question is, how far short of everything? How far short of the full story will the release fall?” Matthews said.
“The issue at the heart of it… where does Donald Trump feature? Remember, he emphatically denies all knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activities and any involvement in them.”
Read more:
Releasing the Epstein files: How we got here
Ghislaine Maxwell attempts to overturn conviction
‘Frustration building’
Meanwhile, frustration is building at the justice department ahead of the release, according to CNN.
A source has told the US broadcaster that there could be up to 1,000 redactions needed from each attorney.
Lawyers reportedly believe they aren’t getting clear or comprehensive direction on how to make the most information available under the law.
A previous batch of images featured more high-profile figures, including Donald Trump, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Bill Clinton, British entrepreneur Richard Branson, Emirati businessman Ahmed bin Sulayem, and singer Jimmy Buffett.
Several images of a sexual nature have also been released, including a picture of a bowl of novelty condoms with a caricature of Mr Trump’s face, and various sex toys.
TikTok’s Chinese owner has signed a deal to sell the company’s US arm to American investors – ensuring the video platform can continue operating in the United States.
The deal is expected to close on 22 January 2026, according to an internal memo seen by Sky News’ US partner, NBC News.
It will end years of uncertainty over the app’s future in the States, after Joe Biden signed a law last year that required TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell up – or else it would be blocked.
The law was introduced amid concerns from some US politicians that ByteDance might share user data with the Chinese government, despite repeated assurances from the firm that it would not.
Critics also expressed fears that Chinese authorities may be able to manipulate TikTok’s algorithms and shape what content users see and are influenced by. This claim was also denied.
Mr Biden set a January 2025 deadline for the sale and when ByteDance failed to comply, TikTok went dark for several hours.
It returned after Donald Trump signed an executive order to keep it running on his first day in office.
Who’s taking over?
The internal memo sent to employees on Thursday said the deal allows “over 170 million Americans to continue discovering a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community.”
TikTok owner ByteDance will sell just over 80% of the company’s US assets to three major investors, Reuters news agency reports.
The investors – Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX – will form a new venture, named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC.
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The venture will be 50% held by the consortium of US investors, Reuters added, with affiliates of certain existing ByteDance investors holding 30.1% and ByteDance itself retaining 19.9%.
It will have a new, seven-member majority-American board of directors and be subject to terms that “protect Americans’ data and US national security”, the memo said.
Data from users in the US will be stored locally.
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