I Read the Would-be Trump Assassin’s Book So You Don’t Have To

On Sunday, Hawaii resident and convicted felon Ryan Routh was arrested after allegedly attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at the former president’s golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Although Routh’s precise motive remains unclear, his self-published book—Ukraine’s Unwinnable War: The Fatal Flaw of Democracy, World Abandonment and the Global Citizen—Taiwan, Afghanistan, North Korea and the End of Humanity (2023)—offer some insights into his worldview. Part political manifesto, part memoir, the book provides a wellspring of information about Routh’s eccentric political opinions and bizarre personality. Here are several key takeaways: 

Routh is obsessed with the war in Ukraine. He sees the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as existential for democracy, writing, “Unfortunately the course of history and the future of democracy and communism all hinges on the personality of the Ukrainian nation.” (It is unclear whether Routh believes Russia is still a communist country or if he’s simply using communist as a shorthand for authoritarianism.) Calling the Russia-Ukraine conflict “everyone’s war,” he bemoans the lack of American troops on the ground in Ukraine—and our unwillingness to start a nuclear war with Russia. He also advocates for a global military coalition against Russia, and asks why small Caribbean countries like Saint Lucia and Grenada are sending teams to the Olympics—but not weapons and soldiers to Ukraine.