Do Politicians Stage Their Own Assassination Attempt To Gain Sympathy Votes?

 Even if one assumes that an assassination attempt is being faked, it will be difficult to prove from a legal perspective

In a world with seemingly deteriorating moral and ethical standards, politicians are known to take extreme steps to win elections. But can a politician go to the extent of faking his own assassination attempt in order to gain sympathy votes? To answer that, we need to understand the following aspects.

Failed assassination attempts in the past

United States Presidents who have been assassinated in the past include Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley and John F. Kennedy. The number of failed assassination attempts is much higher. US Presidents who were wounded in assassination attempts include Theodore Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and most recently Donald Trump.

Various assassination plots have also been detected and neutralized by agencies such as the United States Secret Service and FBI. Such assassination plans were targeted at Presidents such as Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, William Howard Taft, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

Do politicians stage assassination attempts?

A number of conspiracy theories claim that politicians may be faking their assassination attempt. They say that such scenes may help the politician to gain sympathy votes and win an election. Even the opposing parties are known to make similar claims. But the reality is that proving such claims may be next to impossible. Even if one assumes that there has been a fake assassination attempt, it is likely to have been done in a foolproof manner. There is hardly any case where a court of law has ruled that there has been a fake assassination attempt.

The opposing party's view that a fake assassination attempt has been carried out may itself be based on a political narrative. The opposing party may make such claims even when the assassination attempt may be real. They themselves may be trying to alter the narrative to suit their interests and get votes.

Gun culture and social media influence

With the huge number of fake news, misleading narrative and propaganda material floating on social channels, it is very easy for impressionable minds to develop feelings of anger and hatred. This is especially true in case of the young generation. A recent example is Thomas Matthew Crooks, aged 20 years, who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump. Investigations are currently underway by the FBI to uncover the details of the case.

Easy gun ownership is another factor that may aid assassination attempts. In the US, gun ownership is protected as a right by the Second Amendment. While the objective may be self-defense, easy gun ownership is also resulting in gun misuse. There have been hundreds of shooting incidents, which prove that gun misuse is a real challenge.

Legal implications

Irrespective of the claims, one needs to understand that staging an assassination attempt is not only unethical but also illegal. If the fake assassination attempt is proved to be staged, it can also adversely impact the candidate's political career. Due to these factors, there is less chance that a politician will take such a great risk. However, as stated earlier, it will be very difficult to prove such claims in a court of law.