Congressman Lance Gooden (TX-05) introduced the Protect the Presidency Act, which would treat an attempted assassination of the President the same as a fatal assassination under federal law, including making offenders eligible for the death penalty.
Make attempted assassinations of the President punishable the same as fatal assassinations under federal law, including making offenders eligible for the death penalty.
Occurrences
New Gooden Bill Makes Assassination Attempts Eligible for Death Penalty
Evidence
The official Gooden House press releases page lists a May 8, 2025 press release titled "New Gooden Bill Makes Assassination Attempts Eligible for Death Penalty."
The article reports that a federal grand jury indicted Cole Tomas Allen on four felonies, including attempted assassination of President Donald Trump, and says he faces 10 years to life if convicted.
Assessments
Gooden appears to have made a serious same-term legislative attempt to fulfill this promise by introducing a bill on May 8, 2025 aimed at making attempted presidential assassinations death-penalty eligible. But the available evidence does not show enactment of that change, and as of May 5, 2026 federal prosecutors were still pursuing an attempted-assassination case under existing law with penalties of 10 years to life rather than death eligibility. That means the promised policy outcome was not delivered, though the bill introduction warrants effort credit.