The US Secret Service is investigating a deleted social media post by billionaire Elon Musk, which expressed surprise that there had been no attempts on the life of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, following another attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life, Bloomberg reports.
“The Secret Service is examining Musk’s post,” the statement reads.
According to media outlets, the Secret Service’s actions are aimed at determining whether the object of the investigation poses a threat to protected individuals. Threatening the President or Vice President of the United States is a criminal offense punishable by up to five years in prison.
Musk deleted the post on X, the social media platform, and called it a joke the same day, although he allegedly didn’t want to, but agreed after one of the users expressed the opinion that the entrepreneur’s words were being intentionally misinterpreted.
The second attempted assassination of Trump occurred on September 15 near his golf club in Florida. According to law enforcement, Secret Service agents opened fire on a perpetrator hiding in the bushes. The man fled and attempted to escape by car, but was apprehended. A search of the scene where he was spotted revealed an AK-47 rifle with an optical sight, two backpacks, and a GoPro action camera. The FBI has joined the investigation.
During a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13, Trump was injured in the ear, one spectator was killed, and two others were injured. A suspect with an assault rifle was hiding on the roof of a production building 100 meters from the stage and was neutralized by a Secret Service sniper.
Trump has claimed that the alleged rhetoric of his election opponent, Democratic Party candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as that of President Joe Biden, contributed to the attempts on his life.
The US presidential election is scheduled to take place on November 5, with Harris representing the Democratic Party and Trump representing the Republican Party.