(RepublicanReport.org) – On Saturday, July 13, former President Donald Trump was speaking before a crowd in Butler, Pennsylvania, when gunshots rang out. One clipped him on the ear and he dropped to the ground. Secret Service agents immediately rushed to secure him and neutralized the shooter, identified as a 20-year-old male. In the wake of the assassination attempt, many have called on the Secret Service director to step down, but she’s refusing.
Secret Service Failures
Immediately after the shooting that could’ve claimed Trump’s life, people began calling into question exactly how the Secret Service could allow a shooter to get so close. The federal agency is responsible for scouting locations and establishing a security perimeter. It regularly works with local law enforcement agencies to ensure all avenues are covered. Yet, this incident is another to add to the long list of failures over the past few years.
The alleged perpetrator, Thomas Matthew Crooks, climbed up onto the roof of a nearby structure and managed to fire a few rounds with an AR-15 rifle before he was killed. A search of his vehicle later revealed he had explosives with him, too. An attendee, later identified as 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, died in the shooting and two others were critically injured.
There have been many calls for Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign following the assassination attempt, including from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other prominent Republicans.
Director Says She’s Not Resigning
After being thrust into the national spotlight, Cheatle made it clear that she will not be stepping down from her role. She agrees that the event “should never have happened” and that she was immediately full of “shock and concern” when she heard the news. Acknowledging that she is the head of the federal agency and that “the buck stops with” her, she said she would also be reviewing what went wrong and ensuring the agency had the necessary resources to carry out their jobs.
President Joe Biden, who ordered an independent review of the security at the rally, said he is standing behind Cheatle. Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas also expressed “100 percent” confidence in the director following the incident.
In addition to the Secret Service and independent reviews, Congressional committees have pledged to carry out their own investigation into the matter and have called on agents to provide testimony before Congress to get to the bottom of the matter. Cheatle is currently scheduled to testify before the House Oversight Committee.
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