evidence: Donald Trump's shooting might feel 'unprecedented', but attempts to assassinate US presidents are more common than we realise Some may consider the assassination attempt on Donald Trump to be a worrying sign of a new era of unprecedented political violence. [...] Assassination attempts on a president or presidential candidate are not new or novel in US or global history, particularly when attempted by a young "loner" — which is how peers described the 20-year-old shooter in this weekend's attack.