“Can you name Trump’s first would-be assassin?” a colleague asked me last week.

Or can you remember the name of Trump’s second shooter, who posted up with a rifle beside a golf course near Mar-a-Lago?

Here’s my point to this grisly pop quiz…

It's remarkable how quickly the media brushed aside two assassination attempts on former President Trump.

Compare that to the lasting impact of previous attempts on U.S. presidents, and you'll notice a stark difference:

• Gerald Ford's close call with a Manson Family devotee in 1975…
• Or the shocking attempt on Ronald Reagan's life in 1981 (which was far more perilous than the public was led to believe)...
• Perhaps most memorable of all, JFK’s assassination.

These events dominated headlines for months — if not years — and remain etched in the national consciousness.

(For instance, I bet you can remember the names, including middle names, of at least two of the three shooters listed above.)

Yet here we are, mere weeks after Trump faced the second of two serious threats to his life, and it's as if, poof, nothing happened.

The news cycle moved on, leaving these history-altering events in the dust.

One has to wonder: Have we become desensitized to political violence? Or is something more serious in play?

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Your Rundown for Friday, October 4, 2024...

A Third Credible Plot to Assassinate Trump

Last week, the Trump campaign told media outlets that Iran had devised a plan to assassinate the former President.

But before you call Team Trump the “C” word…

Conspiracy theorists…

On July 12th, a man named Asif Merchant was arrested as he prepared to leave the United States.

• Note, that’s the day before a bullet grazed Trump’s ear in Pennsylvania.

Merchant revealed to a federal informant that he came to America to arrange the assassination of “a political person,” according to an FBI affidavit.

While not explicitly stated, evidence suggests the target was Donald Trump, with Merchant authorized to offer up to $1 million for the killing.

• In light of information that the feds knew there was a credible threat against Trump, the Secret Service’s dereliction of duty — on July 13th! — is even more outrageous.

A leaked document posted by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) detailed Merchant's activities, including scouting a Trump rally and reporting on security measures to handlers in Iran.

The FBI described Merchant's discussions with the federal informant, where he “games out the assassination” involving a crowd, staged demonstration and a target at a podium surrounded by security.

Merchant allegedly told the FBI he got involved with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for financial reasons.

He described conversations with his handler, Mehrdad Yousef, about potential targets, including Trump.

The FBI affidavit includes a photo of Merchant explaining the assassination plan, quoting him as saying there would be “security all around” the target.

And he outlined a complex scheme involving multiple participants plus a distraction.

Merchant allegedly told the informant: “Now we know we're going forward” with the plan's execution.

This plot appears to be part of Iran's broader efforts to retaliate for the 2020 killing of General Qasem Soleimani, ordered by then-President Trump.

While Iran has targeted dissidents abroad for decades, focusing on high-profile U.S. political figures represents a significant escalation in tactics.

And according to Paradigm’s former CIA insider Jim Rickards: “The White House has done nothing to increase Secret Service assets or to improve Trump’s security detail.

“The assassination attempts will keep coming,” he asserts. From a financial perspective, Jim suggests having cash set aside and, as always, gold as a safe haven during times of political instability.

[This just in: Tomorrow, October 5th, Trump will return for a rally at the site of his first assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.

In case you had any doubt that all election roads lead to the Keystone State, that’s a gutsy move intended for Team Trump’s maximum impact.

Let’s just hope Trump hires his own closely vetted personal protection detail.]

Market Rundown for Friday, Oct. 4, 2024

S&P 500 futures are up 0.25% to 5,765.

Oil is up 0.40% to $74 for a barrel of WTI.

Gold is down 0.10% to $2,676.50 per ounce.

And Bitcoin is up 1% to $61,500.

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