Reid Hoffman’s political adviser urges journalists to question whether Trump staged an assassination attempt

Following a report last week that billionaire Reid Hoffman wanted President Trump to become a “true martyr,” even more disturbing information comes from Semafor.

Just over an hour after Trump was shot Saturday, Hoffman’s top political adviser, Dmitri Mehlhorn, urged reporters to question whether the incident was “encouraged or even staged” by Trump. Melhorn wrote:

This is a classic Russian tactic, like the one Putin used in 1999 when he killed 300 civilians and blamed terrorists for it to take advantage of the backlash that brought him to power. Others who have adopted this tactic of committing malicious acts and taking advantage of the backlash include Hamas on October 7. If Trump officials encouraged or knew about this attack, it is morally horrific, and Republicans with any decency should demand that Trump resign, because he is not fit to do so.

Of Signal of the day:

…after the assassination attempt on Trump Saturday night, the National Legal and Policy Center on Sunday called on Hoffman to resign from his seat on the board of Microsoft Corp. or be removed by the board.

The NLPC also called for Hoffman to be removed from the Defense Innovation Board, a federally mandated body to recommend technological modernization for the military. The board is chaired by businessman Michael Bloomberg, a former New York City mayor and presidential candidate.