Staff Reports
Republican lawmakers are ramping up the pressure on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle following her revelation to Congress that the agency was aware of a threat to former President Donald Trump before he took the stage where an assassination attempt was made at Saturday’s rally.
Cheatle, along with other officials from the Secret Service and FBI, briefed Congress on the status of federal investigations into the brazen assassination attempt on Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A 20-year-old assailant, Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired multiple rounds at Trump, grazing his ear and killing another supporter while critically injuring two others before being shot dead by the Secret Service.
Republicans step up calls for Secret Service director to resign after briefings on Trump shooting https://t.co/bdFGASS8ES
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) July 17, 2024
Separate unclassified briefings were held for the Senate and House on Wednesday as lawmakers ferociously sought answers to the security lapses that nearly resulted in Trump’s murder. These briefings occurred after House Speaker Mike Johnson announced a bipartisan task force to streamline investigations on this deeply troubling matter.
Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, was the first to call for Cheatle’s resignation, a sentiment that quickly gained traction among his GOP colleagues. Senators Marsha Blackburn and John Barrasso were notably vocal, lambasting the secretive and inadequate nature of the briefing provided by the Secret Service. Add to that the shocking news that the agency had identified Crooks as suspicious an hour before the shooting, and Republicans were rightly fuming.
Senator Mike Lee didn’t mince words either, slamming the briefing as a charade filled with “smoke and mirrors” and lambasting Cheatle for offering incomplete and troubling information. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell echoed this sentiment, suggesting that new leadership at the Secret Service is crucial for restoring trust and ensuring accountability.
House Republicans shared a similar outrage, with Representative Kevin Hern demanding Cheatle’s resignation to usher in “real accountability.” Interestingly, while Republicans were vociferous in their calls for Cheatle to step down, Democrats seemed to retreat into a corner, emitting far less noise on this critical issue.
Sources familiar with the House’s 45-minute briefing disclosed that answers were sparse, and questions were cut short, intensifying frustrations. In response, Johnson is setting up a classified briefing so members can get the answers they deserve when they return to Washington.
Despite the Department of Homeland Security’s attempts to limit Cheatle’s communication with the committees, the Oversight and Homeland Security Committees are also gearing up for public hearings. A subpoena was issued to compel her testimony, reflecting the GOP’s no-nonsense approach to this alarming security failure.
With multiple oversights and blatant disregard for pre-existing threats, the call for Cheatle’s resignation isn’t just justified; it’s mandatory. Anything less would be just another bureaucratic attempt to dodge responsibility while the nation’s security, and that of a former President, hangs precariously in the balance.
