During a congressional briefing with the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI, new information about the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump revealed that the Secret Service was aware of a credible threat against the president well before he walked onstage.
[RELATED: Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle Subpoenaed to Testify Before House Oversight Committee…]
“I just got off a briefing with the Secret Service and FBI. I am appalled to learn that the Secret Service knew about a threat prior to President Trump walking on stage. I have no confidence in the leadership of Director Cheatle and believe it is in the best interest of our nation if she steps down from her position,” said U.S. Sen. Marsh Blackburn (R-Tenn.) on X.
According to U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), who spoke to Fox News following the briefing, the Secret Service had flagged Thomas M. Crooks as “suspicious” an hour before Trump took the stage because he was discovered entering the area with a rangefinder.
Agents then temporarily lost sight of Crooks in the crowd.
An unnamed source told the Washington Examiner that roughly ten minutes before the shooting began, the Secret Service believed that Crooks was a credible threat to the president’s life but nevertheless allowed him to go onstage.
The same source also claimed that the Secret Service agent in charge of security for the Pennsylvania rally was on the phone with local law enforcement about the threat when Crooks began shooting.
It is unclear why the Secret Service allowed Trump to take the stage and remain on stage despite a credible threat to his life, or why they failed to neutralize the threat before the shooting began.
Following the Secret Service’s catastrophic failures during the rally, many have suggested that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle should resign, while some have even suggested that the administration was to some extent complicit in the attempt on Trump’s life, which led to the death of bystander Corey Compatore.
Cheatle has maintained that she will not resign, and no one involved in the security failure has lost their job because of the failures.
Allowing Trump to take the stage despite the threat is not the only disastrous mistake the security team made on Saturday.
No agent was posted on top of the building from which Crooks fired on Trump, but, according to a CBS report, three snipers were posted inside the building during the shooting.
Cheatle has defended the failure to post agents on the roof of the building, claiming that the Secret Service intentionally left the roof unmanned because it was mildly sloped, which could have endangered the agents.
This excuse has led to widespread skepticism, however, in part because agents were able to stand on the roof without difficulty after the shooter was killed, and because one of the sniper teams was posted on a building with a steeper roof.
Cheatle didn’t say whether new training protocols would be adopted to allow her agents to surmount the challenges of a mildly sloped roof.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="29429 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=29429">5 Comments
Another democrat bureaucrat allowed to get away with complete incompetence and corruption and keep their jobs. Remember Lois Lerner a Director under the Obama administration who created an aggressive program to use the IRS to target conservatives and conservatives organizations. When lawmakers and the press in June 2011discovered the she pulled a Hillary Clinton and destroyed the hard drive on her computer thus destroying two years worth of emails that would have likely proved her guilt in the design and implementation of the program. Its bad enough allowing women 8 to 10 inches shorter than Trump who can’t even holster their weapons on the team and then watching these same women run around like Elmer Fudd looking for that “cwazy wabbit”. Lerner was then allowed to go before the congressional committee and declare the 5th amendment. She was then allowed to retire in 2013 forever sucking on the teet of the taxpayer forever. Cheatle will get through the hearings with a slap on the hand and do the same. The question that seems to be missing is whether it was truly incompetence or did they allow it to happen. The Secret Service sniper had him in his sights and when the call came from the sheriff who found the kid on the roof he should have taken him out. Oopsie, so sorry. There’s 3 1/2 months until the election I’m sure they get another chance.
Actual treason
Get a grip, people. There are always “credible threats” against or president no matter if they are a Republican or Democrat. So stop with the BS.
This was a complete failure of the Secret Service and I do hold Director Cheatle must either resign of be fired. I was appalled by what happened and I’m sure people across Party lines are. If they are not then they have the heads where the sun does not shine.
Mistake, Ignorance, or on Purpose. Will we ever know the truth?
ANYONE who believes that Crooks was a “Lone Wolf” and acted aloneis delusional about the Intelligence Community, the Deep State and the Leftists in the Democratic Party.