It’s an ever-growing bizarre story where new tidbits are found daily. On New Year’s Day, a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was later determined to be an intentional bombing. There was one fatality, with several others wounded. The vehicle was rigged to explode using gas cans and firework mortars. The cybertruck contained most of the blast. The bomber, Matthew Livelsberger, 37, a reported US Army Green Beret, was the only one killed. Law enforcement said he shot himself before the car exploded.
Was it an attack? Was it suicide? Was it political? Law enforcement is leaning toward suicide, as he was allegedly suffering from mental health issues and had reportedly just broken up with his wife, with whom they have a daughter, over infidelity issues. If this was a tragic case of suicide, as the FBI suggests, then it’s the most political suicide ever. CNN had a national security commentator claim they didn’t know if this incident was executed by someone who was pro-Trump or anti-Trump. At the outset, it seemed ridiculous to say since who blows up a car outside of a Trump Hotel if they support the president-elect.
Well, as it happens, Mr. Livelsberger was a Trump supporter and criticized the government in various notes that have been made public. I stand corrected (via NBC News)
BREAKING: Las Vegas Metro police release more letters from bomber Matthew Livelsberger where he tells Americans to “rally around” Donald Trump, Elon Musk and RFK Jr. https://t.co/RKxmEd5PFv pic.twitter.com/V7AN110STN
— David Charns (@davidcharns) January 3, 2025
A decorated Army veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder called U.S. government leadership “weak” and appeared to acknowledge he purposely blew up a Tesla Cybertruck at the entrance of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on New Year’s Day, police said Friday.
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Two letters in the phone app suggest a possible motive in the blast, Koren said. In one letter, he tells “fellow service members, veterans and all Americans” it’s time to “wake up” because the country’s leadership is “weak” and “only serves to enrich themselves.”
A second letter appeared to shed more light on Livelsberger’s thinking.
“We are the United States of America, the best country ... to ever exist, but right now, we are terminally ill and headed towards collapse,” a second letter said. “This was not a terrorist attack. It was a wake up call. Americans only pay attention to spectacles and violence. What better way to get my point across than a stunt with fireworks and explosives. ... I need to cleanse my mind of the brothers I’ve lost, and relieve myself of the burden of the lives I took.”
Spencer Evans, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Las Vegas division, added that the investigation along with a consultation with the Army determined that Livelsberger likely had post-traumatic stress disorder, and that investigators are aware that there were potential “family issues or personal grievances in his own life that may have been contributing factors.”
Livelsberger expressed other grievances, including about conflicts elsewhere in the world, and domestic and societal issues, Koren said. He cautioned that investigators continue to go through evidence found on the cellphone, and Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators have been unable to access a second phone found in the Cybertruck.
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So, there’s the hook for the media to cast Trump supporters, especially those in uniform, as loose cannons. Be prepared for the media to latch onto this story like a barnacle and denigrate our servicemembers for being the fifth column as they cope with their 2024 election loss. It’s already begun if you watch MSNBC.
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