Whistleblower says most of security detail at Trump rally not Secret Service
Whistleblowers testified that the Secret Service was understaffed on the day of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, while Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri says a source told him many in the security detail working the event were not Secret Service members.
Lawmakers continue to seek answers about how 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to climb to an elevated position and shoot at the former president during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last weekend. The incident has raised questions about the gap in security exploited by the shooter.
In a Thursday letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray, Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio stated that whistleblowers informed the House Judiciary Committee that the Secret Service was shorthanded during Trump's rally due to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Washington, D.C.
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"The Committee has several unanswered questions about the failures that led to the attempted assassination of a president — the first in over forty years — as well as the FBI's ability to conduct a rapid, transparent, and thorough investigation in the wake of its recent scandals," Jordan stated.
"Accordingly, to ensure that the Committee can effectively evaluate these matters during your testimony on July 24, 2024, we request that you be prepared to fully address all questions about the attempted assassination of President Trump and the FBI's investigation of it."
Jordan requested the FBI director prepare to answer questions like why the roof accessed by the shooter was left unsecured and whether the FBI's investigation into the shooter includes a review of the security failures at the rally.
Hawley is another lawmaker who has raised concerns about the security failure at the former president's rally that resulted in the assassination attempt. Earlier this week, the Republican senator sent two oversight letters to the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security, requesting responsive records "related to the Secret Service's staggering security failures that day."
On Friday, Hawley shared a letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas detailing whistleblower allegations about the security at the Trump rally on July 13. Hawley reported that a whistleblower informed him that the majority of agents at the event were not Secret Service but individuals drawn from the department's Homeland Security Investigations unit. Hawley alleges these agents were unfamiliar with the security protocols used at events like this one.
According to Hawley, whistleblowers alleged that detection canines were not used at the event to monitor entry and some individuals were able to access backstage areas without proper designations. In addition, the lawmaker said that whistleblowers raised concerns about the need for a security buffer around the podium where Trump spoke, and they also claimed department personnel were not stationed around the security perimeter at regular intervals.
The Republican lawmaker requested that the DHS answer questions about how it staffed the event and the percentage of HSI and Secret Service agents.
In addition, Hawley demanded answers about how many HSI agents were trained to staff events like the rally in Pennsylvania.
The U.S. Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to The Christian Post's request for comment.
Earlier this week, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, chairman of the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee, issued a subpoena for U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to testify about the attempted assassination of Trump. In the letter, Comer described the shooting incident as "a total failure of the agency's core mission [that] demands Congressional oversight."
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
