The President's Daily Brief - July 17th, 2024: Mystery Assassin, Iran’s Plot Against Trump, & Menendez Convicted

Episode Date: July 17, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: With the nation still reeling from Saturday’s attempted assassination of President Trump, we take a closer look at the would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who remains a mystery. A bombshell report is claiming the Secret Service boosted security for former President Donald Trump in recent weeks after learning about a suspected Iranian plot to assassinate him. After three days of deliberation, a jury has found New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez guilty of all charges in his federal corruption case. We have the details on that. And in today’s Back of the Brief, despite a few days of respite, it appears Democrats are once again pushing President Joe Biden to step aside as their party’s presidential nominee. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Patriot Gold Group. Protect your retirement assets. Talk with the knowledgeable folks over at Patriot Gold. They've been the top-rated gold IRA dealer for seven years in a row. Get that, seven years in a row. Go to patriot gold group.com or call 1-888-6213-856 for a free investor guide. It's Wednesday, 17 July. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief.

I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. In today's spotlight, with the nation still reeling from Saturday's attempted assassination of President Trump, we're going to take a closer look at the would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who, frankly, still remains something of a mystery. Later in the show, we'll take a look at a report that claims the Secret Service boosted security for former President Donald Trump in recent weeks, after learning about a suspected Iranian plot

to assassinate him. Really? So you mean what millions of people saw on Saturday at the Pennsylvania rally? Well, that was enhanced security? Plus, after three days of deliberation, a jury has found New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez forever stuck now with his prison nickname Gold Bar Bob, guilty of all charges in his federal corruption case. We'll have the details on that. And in today's back of the brief, despite a few days of respite, it appears Democrats are once again pushing President Biden to step aside as their party's presidential nominee. But first, today's PDB spotlight. We'll kick things off with our continued coverage of the fallout from the failed assassination attempt on former President Trump, as we begin to learn more about the background of the shooter.

The now-deceased gunman was identified by the FBI on Sunday as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crook, from Bethel Park in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. He was shot and killed by Secret Service agents on Saturday after firing a Trump and the rally goers with an AR-15-style rifle that belonged to his father. Following the assassination attempt, authorities raided Crook's home, where he lived with his parents, finding more than a dozen guns owned legally by Crook's father. They also found materials for two explosive devices in his vehicle connected with wires to a receiver. Now, Crooks allegedly had an interest in computer coding, and investigators are probing the possibility that he was planning to set off an explosion, according to CNN.

Investigators say he went to a gun range on Friday, where he and his father were members, then to a Home Depot on Saturday morning where he purchased a ladder. He then stopped at a gun store, where he purchased 50 rounds of ammunition, before driving to the rally on Saturday. More than 72 hours after the shooting, however, there seems to be. be more questions than answers. Notably, there's little to no trace of Crooks having a social media presence, and investigators are reportedly struggling to piece together any type of motive. They also reportedly struggled to access Crook's cell phone, but did manage to finally crack it on Monday.

So far, the picture emerging of Crooks has been contradictory at best. Former classmates of Crooks expressed complete shock at the news that their peer was the man behind the trigger. Many say, Crooks was self-spoken and kept to himself, with some classmates saying he was regularly bullied by his peers, who would allegedly call him a school shooter. But these details, well, they've been disputed. One classmate said he was, quote, never anything but kind, and never appeared as a threatening person. Another former classmate of Crooks also said that while he was shy, he ultimately found him to be, quote, very kind. The classmate elaborated, quote, he was a nerdy kid, but I don't think he was as harshly bullied, as some people are saying.

No one that I know said they ever found him to be a creepy, loner kind of guy, end quote. Crooks' high school guidance counselor Jim Knapp concurred with that assessment. He told the New York Times that while Crooks definitely preferred solitude, choosing to eat lunch by himself and scroll on his phone, he, quote, wasn't being bullied. Investigators have also been probing his politics as they look for a potential motive. but this line of inquiry is also proving contradictory. He was a registered Republican, but also reportedly donated to a progressive political action committee in 2021.

Investigators told the New York Times that thus far, they've found no evidence of strongly held political beliefs and any text messages or social media posts on his phone. One former classmate described him as being political, saying he was definitely conservative and would take that side during mock debates in history class. But other classmates have expressed confusion at this characterization. One told the New York Times, quote, I would never have known who he was voting for. Another said that they didn't recall him making any political statements in class, and that while he seemed interested in how government worked, he was, quote, not trying to insert his own beliefs into it. Now, in terms of extracurriculars, Crooks did attempt to join the Bethel Park High School Rifle

team while at school, as first reported by the New York Post. He was denied entry, however, due to his incredibly poor marksmanship. A classmate said he would miss the target by as much as 20 feet and described him as, quote, a terrible shot. Now, after graduating in 2022, he attended a local community college where he pursued a degree in engineering science, which he completed in May. He'd been working as a local dietary aide, and his employer said he performed his job well and passed their background checks. Based on initial findings, piecing together a motive is going to take significant time and investigative work. The lack of a social media footprint, no obvious manifesto notes or rantings left behind, a limited or minimal circle of friends or acquaintances,

there appear to be few leads here to pursue in determining what drove crooks to his act. All right, coming up after the break, multiple outlets are reporting that the Secret Service recently enhanced Donald Trump's security after U.S. intelligence agencies learned of a potential plot by Iran to have the former president assassinated. I don't know, boasting that what we all saw on Saturday was some type of enhanced security package might not be the best-selling point for the Secret Service. Plus, New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez has been found guilty of selling influence to foreign powers. We'll have those stories when we come back. USAA knows dynamic duos can save the day, like superheroes and sidekicks or auto and home insurance.

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Terms apply. Welcome back to the PDB. Still on the theme of presidential protection, news broke on Tuesday that, U.S. intelligence agencies have been tracking an Iranian assassination plot against former President Trump in recent weeks. According to an exclusive report from CNN, U.S. authorities became aware of the threat several weeks ago and passed the information along to the Trump campaign. The threat also reportedly led the U.S. Secret Service to immediately increase security around the former president. Now, an unnamed official told CNN, quote, in response to the increased threat,

Secret Service surged resources and assets for the protection of former President Trump. All of this was in advance of Saturday, end quote. I don't think surge means what the Secret Service thinks it means. To say the obvious part out loud, this raises even more pressing questions about the State of Trump's Secret Service security detail and the lapses that allowed a shooter to nearly kill the former president on Saturday. The Secret Service is already facing widespread criticism, obviously, and to learn that Trump's detail on Saturday was actually beefed up compared to what he had several weeks ago is, well, it's more than a little disconcerting. You have to ask yourself, what is security package consistent of prior to the beefing up?

What was it, McGruff the Crime Dog and Barney Fife? To be clear, officials said there's no evidence or reason to think that the assassination attempt on Saturday, involving the 20-year-old crooks, was connected to the Iranian plot. They said this is a separate scheme, thought to be a reprisal, aimed at Trump over the killing of Iranian military commander Kassam Soleimani, back in January 2020 by the Trump administration, that's according to a report by the New York Times. Now, you have to assume that after watching the events unfold on Saturday,

the Iranian regime was thinking, damn, maybe we're overthinking this. Officials said that the intelligence that prompted their warning was new, but was also aligned with previous threats by Iran against Trump and former administration officials, including Mike Pompeo and John Bolton over the killing of Soleimani, who was regarded as the second most powerful person in Iran before his death. Robert Wells, assistant director of the FBI's counterterrorism division, warned Congress back in March that there were still active threats facing former Trump administration officials, noting that Iranian leaders continue to promise retribution.

underscoring the seriousness of Iran's threats, the U.S. government has been providing round-the-clock security for several former Trump-era officials, including Pompeo, Bolton, and Trump's special envoy for Iran, Brian Hook. We know of at least one case regarding Bolton and Pompeo where authorities disrupted an act of plot to assassinate both men. Iran, of course. They've denied the allegations. That's shocking. Moving on, the verdict in the federal corruption trial of Senator Bob Menendez is in. The New Jersey lawmaker was found guilty on all counts of accepting bribes, including cash and gold bars, to benefit foreign governments and businessmen. The verdict was not really a big surprise, given the amount of evidence against Gold Bar Bob. The jury deliberated for nearly 13 hours over three days before finding Menendez guilty. He's been convicted on a total of 16 counts, including bribery, extortion, wire fraud, obstruction of justice, and act

as a foreign agent. U.S. Attorney Damien Williams praised the verdict stating that Menendez's, quote, years of selling his office to the highest bidder have ended. Menendez pleaded not guilty, as did his wife Nadine, whose trial was delayed indefinitely due to a health issue. Menendez's co-defendants, New Jersey businessman Weill Hanna and Fred dabe were also found guilty. A third, Jose Ribe, pleaded guilty and testified during the trial. The trial revealed extensive details of the corruption schemes, including Menendez conspiring to act as a foreign agent on behalf of Egypt, accepting bribes from daves to assisted business with the government of Qatar, and interfering in criminal investigations led by the New Jersey Attorney General's office. Prosecutors argued

that Menendez's influence was up for sale, detailing how he received lavish gifts, such as a Mercedes-Benz convertible, gold bars, and over $400,000 in cash in exchange for his schemes. The gold bars and cash were found hidden throughout Menendez's home, stashed in places like shoes, clothing, and even his embroidered congressional jacket. Yeah, it seems natural. It seems like it would have also been simpler for Menendez to get rich the old-fashioned political way, insider stock trading. Anyway, Menendez's defense team maintained that his actions were within the scope of his senatorial duties

and that the prosecution's case was based on misinterpretation and exaggeration. Defense attorney Adam Fee argued that the defense attorney, the government's case was, quote, cherry-picked nonsense, and that Menendez's actions were lawful and beneficial to the country. What a patriot that Menendez is. He's like George Washington, but with gold bars and cash stuffed in his waistcoat. His legal team also sought to shift blame to the senator's wife. Oh, well, that's touching, given that she's reportedly suffering from an advanced cancer diagnosis. I mean, throwing her under the bus is probably the least of her problems. Menendez, despite his conviction, has filed a petition to run as an independent candidate

for the November U.S. Senate election in New Jersey. He's refused to resign from his Senate seat despite requests from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, though he did step down as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee following his initial indictment in September 2023, where that was good of him. The fallout extends to the Democratic Party as Menendez could potentially split the Democratic vote, if he remained. in the race as an independent candidate. Menendez, who did not testify in his own defense, will be sentenced on 29 October, and that's just a week before the November election. If sentenced consecutively, he faces a maximum of 222 years in prison. All right, next up. It appears that

Democratic lawmakers are once again moving full steam ahead with efforts to remove President Biden from the 2024 ballot. We'll have those details in today's back of the brief. I'll be right back. In today's back of the brief, turmoil on the left as congressional Democrats reignite concerns over President Biden's re-election campaign following a pause after the assassination attempt on former President Trump. The tension centers around the Democratic National Committees, the DNC's, plans,

to proceed with a virtual roll call vote to nominate Biden weeks before the convention. because, I mean, after all, when you've got a fellow like Biden who's sharp as attack and more vigorous than dudes half his age, why wouldn't you rush the nominating process? The DNC decided to move forward with a virtual vote as a contingency against the state of Ohio's initial threat to exclude Biden from the ballot due to the convention occurring after the filing deadline. Although Ohio has since amended its deadline, the DNC continues with the virtual roll call, citing potential legislative reversals. DNC chair, Jamie Harrison, asserts that the timeline for the vote remains unchanged from the

original decision made in May. Now, despite the DNC's assurances, discontent is brewing among Democrats. A letter circulating in Congress argues that there is, quote, no legal justification for the early virtual roll call, urging the DNC to cancel any accelerated voting plans to avoid curtailing legitimate debate. Representative Susan Wilde, Mike Quigley, Pat Ryan, and Mike Levin support the letter, with Quigley and Ryan publicly calling for Biden to withdraw. According to the New York Times, high-profile Democrat Representative Chief Pearl Clutcher

and Conspiracy Busher Adam Schiff told donors that Biden, remaining on top of the ticket, would cost the party the presidency. And that could be the sanest thing that Schiff has said in quite some time. Yet the Biden campaign remains firm that he's not going anywhere. The virtual roll call is set to begin on 29 July and conclude by 5 August, and that's two weeks before the Democratic National Convention kicks off on August 19th in Chicago. The Democrats rush to a virtual roll call vote exposes their fear of open debate and Biden's shaky re-election bit, risking further division within the party and jeopardizing their chances in November, not to mention that it doesn't seem very democratic of them to squash debate and potential challengers. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief for Wednesday, 17 July. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com.

I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool.