As the country continues to learn more about the security failures that led to an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, alarming details are emerging about decisions made by top officials at the agency responsible for his safety.
New reports have indicated that recent charges that the U.S. Secret Service denied repeated requests from Trump's team for additional security resources are in fact true, despite prior denials from the likes of Homeland Security Secretary Alexander Mayorkas, as the Daily Caller explains.
Investigations are underway regarding the shocking scene that unfolded in Butler, Pennsylvania last weekend when a gunman took aim at a Trump rally, killing one man and injuring several others, including the former president.
Observers in the media and elsewhere have expressed outrage and incredulity that a would-be assassin -- who was spotted by rally attendees in advance of his attack -- was able to scale a nearby roof and fire his weapon into the crowd.
In the wake of the event, allegations emerged that for at least two years prior to the fateful day in the Keystone State, Trump's team sought -- but was denied -- additional security assistance such as counter-sniper support and magnetometers.
Last week, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi rebuffed those claims, stating that there was “an untrue assertion that a member of the former President's team requested additional security resources & that those were rebuffed,” but new reporting from the Washington Post tells a different story.
According to the Post, requests from the Trump team for additional assistance were indeed denied by the Secret Service for a period of two years prior to the assassination attempt, and the denials were attributed to staffing shortfalls and an increased number in the individuals requiring the agency's services.
One internal whistleblower told the Post, “It's just true -- we don't have the resources to secure [Trump] like we did when he was president.”
Retired agent Bill Gage, explained, “I hate to dumb it down this much, but it is a simple case of supply and demand. The requests get turned down routinely. A director has to finally come forward to say we are way understaffed, and we cannot possibly continue with this zero-fail mission without a significantly bigger budget.”
The apparent contradiction between initial official responses to the Trump camp's claim and the reporting from the Post have sparked outrage among lawmakers, with Florida Republican Rep. Mike Waltz taking to X to vent his frustration.
“Once again Mayorkas has MISLED the public. On CNN he called my statement that President Trump's detail was DENIEDs repeated requests for stronger secret service protection “an irresponsible statement that is unequivocally false,” Waltz wrote. “Now WaPo is citing officials that I was CORRECT, and that Mayorkas LIED.”
As part of the ongoing quest for answers and accountability in the wake of such a catastrophic security failure, the House Oversight and Accountability Committee is poised to hold a hearing on Monday, as The Hill reports.
After a fair bit of uncertainty and internal discussion, embattled Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has confirmed her plans to heed a subpoena and appear at the proceedings, with the agency stating, “We are committed to better understanding what happened before, during and after the assassination attempt of former President Trump to ensure it never happens again.”
Considering the obfuscation in which the agency has already engaged, however, precisely how much clarity will ultimately emerge from the hearing is something that remains to be seen.
