US teacher suspended for ‘better scope’ post on X after Trump shooter misses aim

WASHINGTON: A school teacher in Oklahoma, United States, was stripped of her teaching certificate after she appeared to express disappointment that the assassination attempt on the former American US President Donald Trump was unsuccessful.

Alison Scott, who teaches high school students in Ardmore district, was stripped of her certificate after she said she wished Trump’s shooter had succeeded in the work.

“I have investigated it enough. I will be taking her teaching certificate. She will no longer be teaching in Oklahoma”, Oklahoma State Department of Education Superintendent Ryan Walters said on his X account.

Meet Alison Scott, a teacher at @Ardmore_Tigers. She appears sad the sh**ter missed and “wishes” he had a better scope.

These are the people educating your kids.

Any comment @Ardmore_Tigers? pic.twitter.com/kf5AGEsr2I

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 16, 2024

In a subsequent tweet, Walters posted, “No one in Oklahoma education system will support the assassination of @realDonaldTrump. It will not be tolerated. Ever!” He used the hashtag maga with the post, an acronym of Make America Great Again, popularised by Donald Trump in his 2016 presidential campaign.

This is unacceptable. SDE is investigating. We will not allow teachers to cheer on violence against @realDonaldTrump https://t.co/Sazj4ekOnp

— Superintendent Ryan Walters (@RyanWaltersSupt) July 16, 2024

Walters’ reaction followed a posting on a popular account on social media X, Libs of TikTok, which highlighted screenshots of Scott’s comments apparently on Facebook after Trump survived a shooting attempt at his rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.

The post on the X account Libs of Tik Tok operated by Chaya Raichik said, “Meet Alison Scott, a teacher at @Ardmore_Tigers. She appears sad the shooter missed and “wishes” he had a better scope. These are the people educating your kids. Any comment @Ardmore_Tigers?”

The post caught the eye of Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters who said, “This is unacceptable. SDE is investigating. We will not allow teachers to cheer on violence against @realDonaldTrump”.

In an earlier posting the X account, Libs of Tik Tok, highlighted another teacher’s comments expressing her disappointment that Trump’s shooter missed his target.

“Meet Jennifer Ripper, a teacher at Semper Elementary School in @JeffcoSchoolsCo. She’s very sad that the sh**ter missed.Any comment @JeffcoSchoolsCo?,” Libs of Tik Tok posted. Following this, a Colarado school district said it did not “endorse violence.”

NBC reported that Lori Gimelshteyn, the executive director of the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network, told Crisis in the Classroom (CITC) that Ripper’s remarks came at a time when “a balanced approach where educators focus on delivering a rigorous, non-political education” is needed.

The X account Libs of Tik Tok has also reposted several other posts by teachers and other professionals who had shared their reactions on social media following the Trump assassination attempt.

Trump narrowly escaped an attempt on his life surviving with a nicked ear during his rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday after Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at him. The attack left him with a bloodied face as the former president said the bullet pierced his “upper part of right ear”. (ANI)