Donald Trump Jr Thinks Shakespeare In The Park Is To Blame For Alexandria Shooting

Donald Trump Jr. insinuated that the Wednesday morning shooting of a Republican Congressional baseball team in Virginia was inspired by a New York production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar that depicted Caesar as President Donald Trump.

Trump Jr. retweeted Harlan Hill, a 26-year old conservative pundit, who posted: “Events like today are EXACTLY why we took issue with NY elites glorifying the assassination of our President.”

READ: Anderson Cooper Opens Up About Kathy Griffin’s Donald Trump Photo Scandal

A lone gunman was responsible for the shooting on a baseball field in Alexandria, Virginia. Injured in the attack were Steve Scalise, Majority Whip of the House of Representatives, two members of Scalise’s protective detail, a congressional aide and a lobbyist.

The shooter was identified as James T. Hodgkinson, a 66-year-old man from Belleville, Illinois, who specifically targeted the Republican team as they practiced for an annual charity baseball game.

Hodgkinson died of injuries, President Trump announced in a public address.

Julius Caesar is a production by New York’s Public Theatre as part of its free "Shakespeare in the Park" program. The iteration of the play has received widespread criticism from members of the right. Trump’s eldest son, in particular, expressed his disdain for the portrayal as it may be perceived as an endorsement of violence.

Trump Jr. posted on Twitter over the weekend: “I wonder how much of this 'art' is funded by taxpayers? Serious question, when does 'art' become political speech & does that change things?”

Fox News also latched on to the story.

"This is so incredibly in poor taste that I'm surprised they haven't cast Kathy Griffin in the production," said conservative pundit Guy Benson on Fox News.

Griffin, a longtime comedian, recently drew national attention and condemnation for releasing a photograph of a fake bloodied head of the president.

The backlash to the play caused corporate sponsors Delta Airlines to pull support from New York Public Theatre, while Bank of America pulled support from the production.

New York Public Radio News Editor and Theatre Critic Jennifer Vanasco wrote that the controversy was much ado about nothing.

“(The play) is, perhaps, too on-the-nose; but it is not — as conservative and alt-right media outlets have suggested — a show that glorifies the assassination of the President. In fact, it is almost the opposite of that,” Vanasco wrote in her review of the play. “Yet Delta Airlines and Bank of America said Sunday they would no longer sponsor this production. In a statement, the bank said the production was "intended to provoke and offend. Provoke thought? Certainly. Offend? Only if you take that one scene in isolation.”

The director of the play, Oskar Eustis, addressed the criticism in a statement.

"Julius Caesar can be read as a warning parable to those who try to fight for democracy by undemocratic means. To fight the tyrant does not mean imitating him,” wrote Eustis.

READ: Kathy Griffin's Trump Beheaded Photo: 8 Celebrities Supporting The Comedian After Controversy

Meanwhile, the story continued to gain traction in some right-wing circles. Pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec, who gained fame for peddling Pizzagate, posted his feelings on Twitter: “After Kathy Griffin and Julius Ceasar, the Russia conspiracy theory, the Left and (Mainstream Media) inspired today's terrorist attack #Alexandria.”