US Secret Service Director resigns after Trump failure
US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies during a House Oversight Committee hearing examining potential security failures surrounding the attempted assassination on former US President Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, July 22, 2024. (AFP Photo)
U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned Tuesday following widespread outrage over her agency’s failure to prevent the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally earlier this month.
House Committee Hearing Sparks Resignation
Cheatle’s resignation, first reported by NBC News citing sources, came a day after a House committee blasted her during a hearing on the Secret Service’s actions leading up to Trump’s July 13 rally in Butler Township.
Despite owning up the failure, Cheatle refused to resign at the hearing. She claimed being the best-qualified person to lead the Secret Service, which protects former and incumbent presidents, vice president, their families, and leading presidential candidates.
Trump, the Republican nominee for president, narrowly avoided getting killed by 20-year-old gunman Thomas Crooks. The shooting resulted in one rally attendee’s death and critically injured two men.
The Secret Service faced criticism for not extending its security perimeter to include the complex where the building was located, leaving it to local law enforcement to secure the area. Despite a report from local police about a suspicious person at the event, Secret Service agents allowed Trump to take the stage. Crooks, the suspicious person, was killed by a Secret Service sniper after firing multiple rounds at Trump.
The Secret Service had admitted incorrectly stating that they did not reject requests from Trump’s campaign for enhanced security. The agency has faced criticism in recent years for a series of scandals and missteps.
