Man’s snarky reference to ‘head shot’ on president results in Secret Service visit

A man has learned his snarky comment about ordering a “very powerful” piece of equipment that he hopes “to actually use to shoot the president of the United States. I’m not kidding,” has consequences.

So far, a visit from the Secret Service and the confiscation of a handgun.

The Gateway Pundit said Wesley Arnold, 80, a retired professor, made the comments at a Warren, Michigan, city council meeting.

“I ordered a high-powered ATL 36X arriving shortly, which I hope to actually use to shoot the president of the United States. I’m not kidding,” he said. “This is a very high, powerful item. It’s great for a headshot at a distance…”

Editor’s Note: Please be aware of offensive language in social media posting:

Holy Sh*t this retired professor just announced he bought a gun to shoot the President of the United States! pic.twitter.com/QUaNO1r4yA

— Karli Bonne’ (@KarluskaP) February 26, 2026

The snarkiness came because there was the implication that the ATL 36X was a weapon, when in fact that description is used for a piece of camera equipment. It also shows up in a search for several other products.

A report from a Detroit Fox affiliate said, “The elderly man says he was talking about photos of the president but used a poor choice of words.”

The Secret Service did visit him, and took away a handgun the man had.

Arnold also now has told reporters it was all a misunderstanding.

“No, I’m a harmless old man and I believe in freedom of speech…” he said.

When the Detroit Fox reporter asked whether his speech was “a little bit threatening,” Arnold admitted it “turned out that way.”

He claimed, “I’m in the habit of saying you shoot a headshot, or you shoot a picture rather than you take a picture.”

Fox 2: “So when you said shoot, you meant by a camera, not a gun?”

“Of course,” Arnold said.

It wasn’t clear why Arnold was talking to a council meeting about a camera lens.

Later, he said, “I have no intent of shooting any public official except with a telephoto lens.”

However, President Donald Trump has been targeted by a number of actual assassination attempts, and a multitude of threats. In fact, Democrats and other leftists constantly refer to him as a “Hitler,” a reference that suggests he should be a target.