Trump's first remarks after Mar-a-Lago intruder shot dead: 'Don't know how long I'll be around'

US President Donald Trump

• Armed man shot dead after breaching Mar-a-Lago perimeter
• Trump says he feels targeted as a "consequential" president
• Incident highlights rising political violence in the US

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A day after an armed individual was shot dead over breaching the perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, the Florida residence of Donald Trump, the US President said he was unsure how long he would be around.

“I don’t know how long I’ll be around,” Trump said, adding, “Got a lot of people gunning for me, don’t I?”

Authorities identified the man who was shot dead Sunday as Austin Tucker Martin, 21, from North Carolina. The man, in his early 20s, reportedly had a gas can and a shotgun. He had been reported missing by his family a few days ago.

Responding publicly for the first time, Trump said he believes he is being targeted because he is a “consequential” president.

"You know, you read about all these crazy shooters, but they only go after consequential presidents, not inconsequential presidents," he said at an event at the White House.

Continuing his remarks, he noted that Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy, who were killed in office, were similarly “consequential” presidents.

The incident occurred against the backdrop of rising political violence in the US. Last year, a gunman’s bullet clipped Donald Trump’s ear at a Pennsylvania campaign rally. In another case, a suspect later convicted of attempted assassination was discovered concealed in shrubbery at a Florida golf course carrying a semi-automatic rifle while Trump was playing there.

Martin walked up to the secure perimeter at Mar-a-Lago early Sunday and went through a gate when it opened for employees to leave, a US Secret Service spokesperson said Monday. Martin dropped a gas can and raised a shotgun at two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy who then opened fire "to neutralize the threat,” said Sheriff Ric Bradshaw.

Trump, who often spends weekends at the Palm Beach, Florida, resort, was at the White House at the time.