Ryan Routh tried to kill Donald Trump in September 2024. Before that, he was emailing the Biden State Department about his plans to recruit foreign soldiers for Ukraine.
And as far as we can tell from newly released documents, nobody followed up. Nobody investigated. Nobody connected the dots.
A man who would later be convicted of attempting to assassinate a former president was communicating with federal agencies about moving thousands of soldiers across international borders — and the Biden administration apparently just… ignored him.
The Emails Paint a Picture of a Man Who Should Have Been on Every Watchlist
Documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit reveal Routh’s communications with the State Department.
In a March 2023 email, Routh claimed his team was “already supplying background checks from the US military” and that there were “5,600 soldiers ready to be transported from Pakistan to a neighboring country of Ukraine and bussed into Ukraine to the front lines to fight.”
He dropped the name of Congressman Barry Moore of Alabama, claiming Moore’s office was helping with background checks. Moore’s office says that’s false — a staffer took one meeting with Routh after he showed up unannounced, determined he was problematic, and referred him to the State Department.
That referral apparently went nowhere. The emails got auto-replies. Records don’t show any official following up.
A man talking about moving thousands of foreign fighters, name-dropping congressmen, and outlining international military operations — and nobody thought this warranted attention?
Multiple Warnings, Zero Action
Routh wasn’t some unknown figure operating in shadows.
He self-published a book in 2023 that included a line seemingly inviting Iran to “assassinate Trump.” He was interviewed by the New York Times in March 2023 about Americans volunteering in Ukraine. He was visible, vocal, and leaving a trail.
And someone explicitly warned federal authorities about him.
Another American who met Routh in Ukraine contacted a Customs and Border Protection official in June 2022, calling Routh a “ticking time bomb” and warning about his threats of violence.
June 2022. More than two years before Routh positioned himself at Trump’s golf course with a rifle.
The Department of Homeland Security had launched a program in 2022 specifically designed to identify Americans who might turn violent after returning from Ukraine. Routh seemingly slipped through entirely.
A book suggesting Trump’s assassination. A direct warning calling him a “ticking time bomb.” Emails to the State Department about moving soldiers internationally. And nothing happened.
Routh’s Communications Show Escalating Ambitions
The FOIA documents reveal Routh was persistent.
In an October 2023 email to Ambassador Bridget Brink and Defense Attaché Garrick Harmon, Routh indicated that Embassy staff had already been in contact with one of his associates:
“Your staff has spoken with [redacted] at great length and most recently had a meeting where he was asked to provide the execution details of the project as well as accounting of how funds would be allocated.”
So the Embassy was engaging with Routh’s network. They were asking for “execution details” and “accounting of funds.” This wasn’t a random crank being ignored — there was apparently substantive discussion happening.
And yet, when that associate “dropped the ball,” Routh wrote that he could “be back in Ukraine at a moment’s notice” to arrange whatever was needed.
Who was monitoring this? Who was tracking a American citizen coordinating international military recruitment while publicly musing about assassinating a presidential candidate?
The Questions the Biden Administration Never Answered
The Center to Advance Security in America, which obtained these documents, isn’t satisfied.
“Several unanswered questions remain regarding these communications,” said CASA Director James Fitzpatrick. “We still don’t know whether the Biden administration responded in any substantive way to Routh. The American people deserve answers.”
Here’s what we need to know:
Did anyone at State flag Routh’s communications as concerning? Did DHS’s Ukraine returnee monitoring program ever generate a file on him? Did the CBP warning about him being a “ticking time bomb” get shared with other agencies? Was there any interagency communication about this guy?
The documents released so far suggest the answer to all of these is no. Or if yes, nobody acted on it.
Routh’s Trial Showed a Man Unhinged — And Unchecked
Routh represented himself at trial. The judge repeatedly interrupted him for going off-topic. He’s requested to be imprisoned in a state with assisted suicide. He’s suggested he could be traded in a prisoner swap.
“Do not let me take my own life and it have zero benefit for humanity or mankind,” he wrote in court filings.
This is a deeply disturbed individual who left warning signs everywhere he went. He published them. He emailed them to federal agencies. He told people in Ukraine he was dangerous.
And somehow, he was able to position himself at Trump’s golf course with a weapon, months after another assassin nearly killed Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Two Assassination Attempts, One Massive Failure
Let’s remember the context.
In July 2024, a gunman’s bullet grazed Trump’s ear at a rally in Butler. The Secret Service failure was catastrophic — a shooter on a rooftop within rifle range, spotted by bystanders, and not stopped until after he fired.
Two months later, Routh was at Trump’s golf course. Different location. Different method. Same target.
And this time, we learn that Routh had been on federal radar for years. Warning to CBP in 2022. Emails to State in 2023. A published book mentioning Trump’s assassination.
The Butler shooter may have been harder to predict. Routh was practically advertising his intentions. And still, nothing.
This Wasn’t a Failure of Information — It Was a Failure of Action
The Biden administration had the information. They had warnings from citizens. They had Routh’s own communications. They had a program specifically designed to catch people like him.
And they either didn’t connect the dots, didn’t share information across agencies, or simply didn’t care enough to follow up on a threat to Donald Trump.
We can debate which explanation is worse. What we can’t debate is the result: Two assassination attempts on a former president in two months, and one of the attackers had been flagged years in advance.
Routh’s sentencing is Wednesday. He’ll spend the rest of his life in prison.
But the Biden officials who ignored the warnings, who didn’t follow up on the emails, who let a “ticking time bomb” keep ticking until he nearly killed a president — they’ll face no consequences at all.
That’s the real scandal. And the American people still don’t have answers.