Ryan Routh, the man accused of allegedly attempting to shoot at President-elect Donald Trump before the election, has something to say.
And that he did just that in a letter sent to Politico senior writer Ankush Khardori.
According to a report in Politico, Routh sent the four-page letter to Khardori from the federal detention center in Miami where he has been since mid-September. That’s when Routh allegedly tried to kill Trump at his golf course in Florida.
Routh also apparently sent a letter to the “Palm Beach Post.”
“In deciding to publish this story, we were not eager to appear as if we were simply providing a platform for the political views of someone accused of attempted murder,” Khardori wrote in a column. “It is generally not a good idea simply to take the claims of an accused or convicted criminal at face value.”
“They can have agendas and delusions — sometimes both,” Khardori added. “But ultimately, Routh’s letter — which includes potentially incriminating references to the attempt on Trump’s life and a self-description of his political beliefs — is newsworthy.”
One of Route’s issues was with the two-party system.
“I am unclear how we allowed ourselves to fall into just a two-party system,” Routh wrote, “but it infuriates me. My entire life has been plagued by D’s and R’s. It seems not long ago there was a push for the libertarian party and now a green party and maybe Truth party. But for some reason our leaders have not allowed any other party [to] be recognized in any race.”
Routh also wrote full public campaign financing to “eliminate private donations.” He also writes about the “gridlock in Congress.”
“We all wonder why we end up with such flawed candidates,” Routh wrote, “when our system is designed to exclude most everyone.”
Routh also denied being a part of the Democratic Party.
“A guard [in] Palm Beach asked jokingly if I was a democrat — I said, ‘NO — Independent — I vote for the best candidate,’” he wrote.
But that does not mean Routh is a Trump fan either.
In his letter, written before the election, Routh called for the U.S. “to remove the power of our military by the President and place it with Congress before January,” if Trump won.
“We must limit all Presidential power before Trump seizes our country,” he wrote.
If Trump lost, Routh wrote Americans should “encircle the capitol” prevent another riot that took place on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Routh referred to himself multiple times as the ‘Trump Alleged Shooter,’ perhaps to avoid an explicit confession, but at one point, he linked himself directly to Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was the first person who tried to assassinate Trump this year, during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania,” Khardori wrote.
“Crooks was killed on sight by a Secret Service sniper; Routh has been charged with the attempted assassination of Trump but has pleaded not guilty,” Khardori wrote. “Routh described them both, however, as being ‘ready to die for freedom and democracy.’”
Routh criticized Trump for having “destroyed the MidEast.” He also took issue with Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal — and said Trump was responsible “for all those lives lost and all the destruction” in the region since.
Routh ended the letter by urging an agreement to end the conflict in the Middle East.
“We must demand that Israel stop their attacks and demand that all parties come to the table and find common ground,” he wrote.
“My fellowmen,” the would-be assassin wrote, “please demand peace.”
