Staff Reports
In another shocking display of utter incompetence, the Secret Service managed to bungle the security of former President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Despite knowing about a potential threat well before Trump took the stage, they let the situation spiral into chaos. Lawmakers revealed just how inept the agency was during a briefing on Wednesday.
According to Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), Thomas Matthew Crooks had been flagged as a suspicious character more than an hour before he started firing. Crooks was seen with a rangefinder and a backpack, yet somehow, the Secret Service thought it was fine to lose track of him. One would think that keeping an eye on someone like that would be priority number one, but apparently, that was asking too much.
I found this on NewsBreak: Secret Service knew of threat to Trump but still let him take stage, lawmakers hear https://t.co/07rBwtFOpC
— ERIC SANSON (@ERICSANSON1) July 18, 2024
As Trump stepped onto the stage, oblivious to the impending danger, Secret Service agents were still fumbling around. A source told the Washington Examiner that the Secret Service was aware of the threat about 10 minutes before Trump spoke. To add to the absurdity, an agent was on the phone with police as the shooting started. It remains unclear how much time elapsed between identifying the threat and relaying the information, but it was obviously too little, too late. Trump’s speech was abruptly cut short six minutes in by gunfire.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) jumped on social media to voice his disgust. He pointed out that the shooter had been identified as “suspicious” a full 19 minutes before the shots rang out. In the aftermath, Lee didn’t mince words, calling for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to step down immediately. He criticized her for a briefing that he described as “mostly information free” and noted that the call was abruptly ended after only a few questions were answered.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) joined in, echoing Lee’s call for Cheatle’s resignation. She stated that she has no confidence in the agency’s leadership, and who could blame her? Barrasso chimed in as well, denouncing the briefing as a clear case of “cover-your-a**” rather than addressing the real failures.
The tragic incident claimed the life of Corey Comperatore, 50, and injured Trump along with two other attendees. Crooks, who managed to position himself on a rooftop 150 yards away, fired eight shots before being taken out by a Secret Service sniper team. Now, both the Secret Service and FBI are conducting a slew of investigations into these glaring security failures.
It’s evident: if this is how the Secret Service operates under current leadership, it’s no wonder that America’s highest-profile figures are left exposed to danger.
