What has led to the return of assassinations to politics, both in Europe and in America? Is it the deterioration of political discourse, the more aggressive communication, or the war in Ukraine that is contributing more to the increasingly worsening situation? What is common in the attempted assassination of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico in May and the recent attack on former US President Donald Trump? What or who is behind the people’s general anger, be they in Europe, the US or anywhere else in the world?
Words such as assassination and executions have become part of everyday discourse over the past two years, but so far they have mainly been associated with the war in Ukraine. US intelligence has just revealed that it had uncovered the plot by Russia against German Rheinmetall chief Armin Papperger who has not only openly criticised Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but become one of the largest European suppliers of armor technology and artillery shells for Ukraine.
2024 was expected to be an emotionally intense year, with elections taking place in many countries around the world, including the EU and the US. The European election campaign has been intense as never before, and the extremely aggressive political communication has had its impacts on voters – they have become desperate, ready to accept only one scenario: ’WE win and THEY get trampled in the mud’, accompanied by the message that ’If THEY win, the world is coming to an end, so this should be prevented at all costs’.
According to investigations, such sentiments motivated the attacker on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico who fired several shots at him in May when the temperature of political discourse in the run-up of the European elections was quite high. Fico survived the attack, although his health was permanently damaged. Following the incident, he blamed his political opponents for the attack. He said the leftists had communicated so aggressively in the campaign that they were responsible for the extremely negative change in public mood, and specifically for the fact that ordinary people like the elderly lone attacker, could fully become under the influence of false political narratives. He sadly mentioned that, under the influence of politics, ordinary people become ready to commit assassinations, in order to get rid of politicians. In line with Fico’s words, the Slovak government called the shooting ’politically motivated’, blaming the opposition and the media for the toxic political atmosphere in Slovakia.
The assessination attempt on Slovak PM Fico exposes risks for politicians in a polarised Europe, CNN said in May. Similar questions arise in the context of the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump, which was carried out on 13 July.
’The targeting of a former president at a campaign rally just days before he accepts the Republican nomination is, by definition, an attack on democracy and the right of each American to choose their leaders.’, CNN assesses the situation. In line with CNN, Politico also believes that the shooting at Trump is proof of the increase in violence that has become America’s political reality.
In light of the recent developments, people all around the world seem very angry, regardless where they live and this has a specific reason. These days, in terms of politics, countries are polarised and people are traumatized and these two phenonomena provide an excellent ground for political violence which ususally marks transition periods.
The fact that the struggling economies, the war in Ukraine, the crisis in Israel, the high levels of migration, etc. are all contribute to tensions in societies and to political divisions should not be forgot. Sadly, these issues can greatly be embedded in various political narratives and they can easily be used as slogans in election campaigns.
Politics both in Europe and in the US have become extremely divided. Both the far-right and the radical left try to conquer new lands, using emotive language. While populism has become popular, the heat of political rhetoric increased to the extent that a toxic political culture has been born. In this new political ’culture’, cases of defamation have become routine, and attracting the media attention is above everything.
Though political violence should not be allowed neither in the EU, nor in the United States or elsewhere in the world, assassination attempts were conducted both in Slovakia and Pennsylvania by lone perpatrators, although it is not yet clear whether violence was used because it was considered to be an effective way of gaining attention or, the attacks were in fact assaults on the transfer of power…?
Following the shooting on Trump, Prime Minister of Slovakia Robert Fico posted on Facebook: ’It is a carbon copy of the script. Trump’s political opponents are trying to shut him down. When they fail, they incite the public until some poor guy takes up arms.’
It should be noted that the same way the assassination attempt against Fico had strong implications in Slovakia for such crucial fields as the stability of the government, the life of the people and the results of the parties in the European elections, the same applies to the United States, in the context of the assassination attempt against ex-president Donald Trump. But while Slovakia is a small European country, the attack on Trump is a more serious attempt to interfere in the life of the world’s No.1 superpower which may influence the forthcoming presidential elections, disrupt the lives of hundreds of millions of people, undermine the authority of the US security services, a leading nation’s domestic and foreign policy, not to mention its international reputation.
Sadly, intensified and aggressive political communication has become a side effect of contemporary politics, in which opposing parties clash on ideological grounds using increasingly radical means and methods: extreme commitment to a cause or idea leads to radical steps by all, ranging from politicians to voters and from political activists to supporters. A belief in one’s own truth seems to legitimise the use of violence. This was the driving force behind Juraj Cintula’s, Fico’s 71-year-old Slovak attacker’s action, and the same applies to Thomas Matthew Crook, the 20-year-old American who attempted to shoot Trump.
In politics, it is no longer just rivals but enemies fighting each other. This fierce hatred for political opponents is reflected in the posts of many Republicans on social media platforms, who clearly blame the radical left for what happened. Anyway, it is interesting to note that neither Fico nor Trump are representatives of the mainstream (liberal) forces, but have very different views. (Please also note that in both assassination attempts, massive failures of security could lead to the attacks.) In view of this and the attacks, it is worth asking whether the attacks took place because the world has reached the point where liberal democracies can no longer tolerate freedom of speech and where any form of disagreement will be punished, just like in the past in the USSR, by outright execution?
European and world leaders condemned the attack on Donald Trump emphasising that ’political violence is never acceptable’ and ’such acts of violence threaten democracy’. Will such statements be sufficient in the future? Is that really good enough for voters who all deserve free speech without being assassinated at a campaign event?
