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Ultimately, an assassination attempt is an assault on the democratic process itself. It is a rejection of the ballot box in favor of the bullet, an attempt to use violence to override the collective will of the people. Each time a leader is targeted, the nation is forced to reckon with the tension between the freedom of expression and the dark impulses of those who seek to silence opposition through bloodshed. Yet, history also teaches us that American democracy possesses a remarkable capacity for endurance. While violence has left deep scars on the timeline of the presidency, the institutions of the government have consistently rebounded. Successors step forward, the rule of law is reasserted, and the nation finds a way to move through the grief and the shock.
