Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. will receive protection from the U.S. Secret Service following the attempted assassination of former President Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Monday.
"In light of this weekend's events, the president has directed me to work with the Secret Service to provide protection to Robert Kennedy, Jr. Both prior to and after the events of this past weekend," Mayorkas told reporters.
On Monday, Trump joined growing calls for Kennedy to receive Secret Service protection in the days since the failed assassination during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. In a Truth Social post, Trump said it was "imperative" that Kennedy receive the protection detail.
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"Given the history of the Kennedy Family, this is the obvious right thing to do!" Trump wrote, referencing the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the 1968 killing of RFK Jr.'s father, Sen. Robert Kennedy, then a presidential candidate.
In response, Kennedy called Trump's remarks a "hopeful sign for our country when a political opponent calls for one's protection. Maybe our country can unite after all."
Kennedy also thanked the Biden administration.
"Thank you to President Biden for granting me Secret Service protection. And I am so grateful to Gavin deBecker & Associates for keeping me safe for the last 15 months of my Presidential campaign," Kennedy posted on X.
Kennedy's campaign racked up $1.4 million in debt by early spring to a private security firm, while the Biden administration has repeatedly denied his requests for Secret Service protection. He has assailed Biden for having rejected at least three requests for protection while on the 2024 campaign trail, going back to last year.
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The Biden administration previously maintained that Secret Service protection for Kennedy was "not warranted," according to a letter obtained by Deseret News. According to Kennedy, that was despite several documented death threats against him.
Kennedy said he spoke with Trump on Monday morning about "national unity."
"I hope to meet with Democratic leaders about that as well. No, I am not dropping out of the race," he said.
In response to Saturday's shooting, the Secret Service has enhanced protection of Trump "based on the evolving nature of threats to the former president and his imminent shift from presumptive nominee to nominee," said Mayorkas.
"I cannot discuss specifics of the production protection or the enhancements made, as they involve sensitive tactics and procedures," he said. "I can say, however, that personnel and other protective resources, technology and capabilities have been added."
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said leaders need to "lower the temperature" in an effort to prevent any more political violence.
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"We need to lower the temperature. That's what we need to do, lower the temperature, and unite the country," she said. "That's what this president, that's the cornerstone of his presidency, is uniting the country. That's what he wants to do."
Fox News Digital's Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.
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