Arthur Bremer

“	It is my personal plan to assassinate by pistol either Richard Nixon or George Wallace. I intend to shoot one or the other while he attends a campaign rally for the Wisconsin Primary.	„
	~ Bremer in his Assassin's Diary.

Arthur Herman Bremer (born 21 August 1950) is an American convicted criminal who attempted to assassinate Democratic presidential candidate George Wallace, leaving Wallace paralysed and wounding three bystanders. He was sentenced to 63 years in prison, later reduced to 53 years on appeal. He was paroled in 2007 after serving 35 years.

Assassination attempt

On 1 March 1972, Bremer began writing a diary entitled An Assassin's Diary (later published in book form in 1973). In it, he detailed his plan to assassinate either Wallace or President Richard Nixon. Bremer planned to shoot either one of the men with a pistol during a campaign rally for the Wisconsin Primary. On 10 April he visited one of Nixon's campaign rallies and intended to shoot him, but failed because security prevented him from getting near.

On 4 May, Bremer wrote in his diary that, as it was impossible to assassinate Nixon, he would focus on Wallace. The next day he checked two books detailing the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy out of the Milwaukee public library. He began attending Wallace's campaign rallies looking for an opportunity to shoot him.

On 15 May, Bremer drove to the Wheaton Plaza in Maryland to attend a Wallace campaign rally. He intended to go up on stage to shake hands with Wallace and then shoot him, but the crowed heckled Wallace and pelted him with potatoes, prompting him to refuse to shake hands with anyone. Bremer was forced to drive 16 miles to Wallace's next rally at the Laurel Shopping Center, where Wallace shook hands with several of those present against the advice of his guards. At approximately 4 pm, Bremer went up on stage to shake hands with Wallace, produced a revolver and fired until the gun was empty. Four of the bullets hit Wallace; the rest missed, wounding two of his bodyguards and a campaign volunteer. He was subdued and arrested by Wallace's security detail after running out of bullets.

Bremer pled insanity when the case went to trial, maintaining that he had been suffering from schizophrenia at the time and had no emotional capacity to understand the consequences of his actions. He was examined by a court psychiatrist, who pronounced him sane. He was convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to 63 years in prison. His sentence was reduced to 53 years on 28 September 1972.

Bremer was paroled from prison on 9 November 2007 after 35 years in prison. He was fitted with an electronic tag and will be on probation until 2025.

Trivia

• According to some of the White House Tapes released during the Watergate scandal, President Nixon instructed Charles Colson to anonymously spread the false rumour that Bremer was a supporter of his presidential rival George McGovern.
  • It was also alleged, but never proved, that E. Howard Hunt had been sent to plant McGovern's campaign literature in Bremer's apartment, but had been prevented from doing so by the police.
• Bremer inspired the character of Travis Bickle in Martin Scorsese's famous 1976 film Taxi Driver.
  • This in turn would inspire John Hinckley, Jr.'s 1981 attempt to assassinate President Ronald Reagan.