Audience ERUPTS After Secret Service Chief Makes Shocking Admission At LIVE Hearing
During a contentious congressional committee hearing on Monday, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle faced accusations of negligence regarding the security at a rally where former President Donald Trump was shot in the ear by a rifle bullet, putting his life at severe risk. Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH) used his time to question Cheatle on whether resources were diverted from the rally to support First Lady Dr. Jill Biden.
Jordan, a staunch supporter of Trump, joined other Republican senators in demanding Cheatle's resignation two weeks after the shooting by 20-year-old assailant Thomas Crooks. Cheatle had previously defended her decision not to place a serviceman on the roof where Crooks was located. Additionally, the agency retracted an earlier statement denying any compromise to Trump’s security team.
“The day after President Trump was shot, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, ‘The assertion that a member of the former president’s security team requested additional resources that the U.S. Secret Service or the Department of Homeland Security rebuffed is absolutely false.’ The next day [DHS] Secretary Mayorkas said, ‘That is an unequivocally false assertion. We had not received any requests for additional security measures that were rebuffed,’” Jordan recounted, noting that the Washington Post revealed just five days later that Trump’s team had indeed requested extra protection.
“Were you guessing or lying when you said you didn’t turn down additional requests from President Trump’s detail?” he asked.
“Neither, sir, and I appreciate the question,” Cheatle responded. “What I can tell you is, for the event in Butler there were no requests that were denied,” to which Jordan retorted, “Well maybe they got tired of asking!”
“How many times did you turn them down ahead of that?” he pressed.
“A denial of request does not equal a vulnerability,” Cheatle replied, struggling to defend the agency’s actions. “There are various ways that risks can be mitigated, through personnel, technology, and other assets.”
Clearly frustrated, Jordan continued to question Cheatle about why her spokesperson had significantly changed the agency’s public statements five days later. “That’s pretty darn frustrating not just for me but for the American people!” he exclaimed.
“I hear your frustration,” Cheatle responded.
Republicans tried to depict the Secret Service as prioritizing the First Lady’s security over Trump’s, putting the agency on the defensive over what was considered the worst security lapse since President Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. A widely circulated video of the exchange highlighted the tension in the committee room. Several legislators, including Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), have called for Cheatle’s resignation.
WATCH:
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) claimed on Monday to have evidence from an agency whistleblower indicating that the Secret Service had sent three “post” officers—or additional detail members—to Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, or had assigned officers to secure a specific area of the perimeter. In contrast, twelve post officers attended Jill Biden’s visit to Pittsburgh. Grassley’s investigation into Secret Service communications regarding the staffing for Trump and Jill Biden, who were only 33 miles apart that day, uncovered this information.