U.K. right-wing firebrand Nigel Farage on Sunday blamed a “liberal narrative” from political opponents for the shocking assassination attempt that left former U.S. President Donald Trump injured and bleeding Saturday night.
The attack at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, which left one attendee dead and two others seriously wounded, threw another jolt into an already stormy U.S. election. Trump, who was hit in the right ear, was treated at a nearby hospital before being released. The gunman was shot dead.
“The narrative that is put out there about Trump by these liberals that oppose him is so nasty, so unpleasant, and I think it almost encourages this type of behavior,” Farage, a long-time Trump admirer, told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg program.
He said he was “upset” but “not shocked” by the shooting, as opposed to several world leaders who claimed to be “deeply shocked” by the attack.
Asked by Kuenssberg whether the political environment should be seen as the main culprit, Farage pointed out that only a few weeks ago President Joe Biden, who is running to secure a second term, said that “Trump should be put in a ‘bullseye’.”
Farage also accused mainstream media, including the BBC, of being “very one-sided.” He said he also was the victim of an attack last week, when someone “threw a drink” at him.
In a show of solidarity, Farage said he will travel to the U.S. in the coming days to meet with Trump. Previous plans by Farage to attend the Pennsylvania rally where the shooting took place were cancelled due to Reform UK leader’s recent election to the British parliament.
Other European right-wing politicians also took a firmly pro-Trump stance after the assault and seconded the idea that left-wing rhetoric should be held accountable for the shooting.
“The hate rhetoric from many leftish politicians and media, who label right-wing politicians as racists and Nazis, is not without consequences,” said Geert Wilders, head of the far-right Freedom Party in the Netherlands. “They are playing with fire,” he said in a post on X.
“I trust the 45th President will become the 47th President,” added Wilders, who won the last Dutch election on a heavily populist ticket. “No one deserves it more,” he said.
“Violence, extremists, and leftists will NEVER stop us or our fight for freedom,” Italian far-right leader Matteo Salvini said. “Trump is the president America needs. Go Donald Go!” Salvini wrote on X.
