Would-Be Trump Assassin Files Bizarre Witness List As Trial Begins

The man accused of attempting to assassinate President Trump submitted a strange list of people he wanted to testify at his trial, including Trump himself, antisemitic activist Mahmoud Khalil, and a Secret Service agent he claimed asked him to engage in inappropriate behavior.

Ryan Routh, who prosecutors say tried to shoot Trump while he was golfing in Florida last year, filed the 24-name witness list on Sept. 2. In the document, he referred to Trump as an “insecure ego idiot-mad fool,” the New York Post reported.

Routh is acting as his own lawyer in the federal case, which began this week in Fort Pierce, Florida, with jury selection. He has no legal background.

Judge Aileen Cannon has already rejected most of the witnesses Routh requested.

The 59-year-old was spotted with an SKS assault rifle hiding in bushes near Trump International West Palm Beach golf course on Sept. 15, 2024. A Secret Service agent opened fire, forcing Routh to flee before he could allegedly carry out his plan.

Routh also attempted to add Palestinian activists, academics, and professors to the list, including Columbia University protester Mahmoud Khalil.

He further listed Yale professor Jason Stanley, who wrote a book on fascism, and his own son, Oran Routh, who was arrested shortly after him on child pornography charges.

During a hearing last week, Cannon denied most of Routh’s picks as “untimely and insufficient,” according to the New York Times. She did allow a small number of friends and relatives to testify for him.

The prosecution intends to call FBI agents, Secret Service personnel, and Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies to the stand.

Jury selection continued into its third day on Wednesday, with opening statements scheduled for Thursday. The trial is expected to last about three weeks.

Cannon has told Routh he will be on a short leash and must follow courtroom rules. Still, his erratic behavior suggests jurors could face plenty of unpredictable moments.

Earlier this week, Cannon barred Routh from asking jurors irrelevant questions about topics like America taking over Greenland, pro-Palestinian activism, or how they’d react if a turtle crossed the road.

Since dismissing his lawyers over the summer, Routh has filed a series of bizarre motions, such as questioning why his case doesn’t qualify for the death penalty, requesting a prisoner swap with Hamas, Iran, China, or Russia, and challenging Trump to a golf match where “he wins he can execute me.”

In that proposal, Routh argued that if Trump lost, he should “get his job.”

Routh has remained in custody since his arrest. He pleaded not guilty to five federal charges tied to the alleged plot. If convicted, he faces a possible life sentence.