Donna Brazile: A crucial reminder that political opponents aren't enemies

Violence must have no place in our politics and can never be justified, even against candidates we fervently oppose.

The attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, which thankfully left him with only a small wound to his ear, horrified me and reminded me of two assassinations that changed my life in 1968 when I was only eight.  

I was shocked when my hero, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., was shot dead in Memphis in April. Crying myself to sleep and praying for his family, I promised myself I would devote my life to the Civil Rights Movement and to making America a more just and equitable society for everyone. 

Nothing I have done can compare with King’s historic achievements, but I have tried to do my small part to follow in his footsteps.   

Just weeks after the King assassination, I was shocked again when another hero, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.) was gunned down in Los Angeles on the night he won the California Democratic presidential primary in June. 

I was a college student in my final year at LSU when a gunman seriously wounded President Ronald Reagan in an assassination attempt in 1981. There’s no doubt these events shaped my early interest in American politics. 

While I was never a fan of Reagan or Trump and worked to defeat them both in their presidential campaigns, including working to reelect President Biden this year, the question that haunted me when I was a young girl still tears me apart. 

Why would anyone want to kill these men? 

Political violence is sadly common in many nations, but for most of our history, Americans have settled our political differences with ballots, not bullets. This is one of the things that has made America an exceptional nation. 

We need to return to the times when we can argue with each other but adhere to King’s philosophy of nonviolence.  

Some Republicans rushed to blame Democratic criticism of Trump for his attempted assassination, even though we still don’t know the motive of his shooter. 

For example, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said the Democratic Party is “flat out evil” and accused Democrats of trying “to murder President Trump.” This kind of hyperbolic and irresponsible nonsense only further enflames passions and can lead to more violence. 

Biden and Democrats — including me — have certainly been critical of Trump. But unlike Trump, Democrats must never incite violence. We should know better. Rather as leaders of one of America’s major political parties or as activists seeking “a more perfect union.”  

We must never rile up citizens to take to the streets to commit mayhem of any kind as former President Trump did with his fervent supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, by sending them marching to the U.S. Capitol, where they staged a deadly riot in an unprecedented effort to overturn his reelection defeat. 

Trump’s heated rhetoric denouncing anyone who criticizes him, his claim that there will be a “bloodbath” if he is not elected, his embrace of Jan. 6 insurrectionists as patriots and his refusal to accept election results he disagrees with have driven some individuals to violence. 

I hope the assassination attempt against Trump allows him to tone down his rhetoric. But as we all witnessed in one of the longest acceptance speeches in American history, Trump will always be Trump. Spewing lies, pointing fingers and playing the victim all in an attempt to divide, deceive and demonize others. 

No one should expect the former president or his followers to start sounding like King in preaching nonviolence. I doubt that civility is in his DNA. 

This isn’t to say Democrats and Republicans should stop disagreeing with and criticizing each other. I still believe that Trump is breathtakingly unqualified to serve as president again and poses a threat to our freedoms, democracy, economy, national security and more.   

The assassination attempt against Trump doesn’t alter his dismal record in office or the harmful policies he advocates, or make him worthy of leading our country again. But that doesn’t mean I want the former president physically harmed. Violence must have no place in our politics and can never be justified, even against candidates we fervently oppose.  

I don’t hate or dislike Donald Trump — I just don’t want him back in the Oval Office. I believe Biden has been an outstanding president and deserves reelection. 

Nor do I hate Trump supporters. I respect their decision to back him and I embrace them as fellow Americans in our gloriously diverse nation. 

In choosing who to vote for in the presidential election, each of us must decide who is more qualified to lead our nation and who will do a better job building a better future for the American people. Sympathy for Trump after he was shot is only natural, but it’s not a reason to vote for him for president. 

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was right to order enhanced Secret Service protection Last for Trump, Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and newly selected Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), and to extend such protection to independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It would be reckless to discount the possibility of a copycat assassination attempt on these officials and others.  

Going forward, Republicans and Democrats in Congress must recognize the threat of political violence can’t be wished away. Congress should provide the Secret Service and Capitol Police with increased funding so they can hire more agents and officers to protect the president, presidential candidates and members of Congress. This hiring will take time, but there is a long-term need to increase protection for officials and candidates.     

In addition, the assassination attempt against Trump highlights the need for commonsense gun safety measures like those long-proposed by Biden, including a ban on assault-style weapons such as the rifle used to shoot Trump. 

While no legislation can end all gun violence, new laws can reduce gun violence and save lives. I hope Trump and congressional Republicans will reverse their vehement opposition to new gun safety measures, although I’m not optimistic they will.  

I’m glad Trump is recovering from the wound he suffered to his ear. I’m saddened that his would-be assassin killed former volunteer Fire Chief Corey Comperatore and seriously wounded two other men.  

If any good comes out of the terrible shooting, it should be a national consensus that we need to settle our political differences peacefully and stop treating those we disagree with as mortal enemies.  

Donna Brazile is a political strategist, a contributor to ABC News and former chair of the Democratic National Committee. She is the author of “Hacks: Inside the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House.”