Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle Steps Down After Trump Assassination Attempt

On Tuesday, U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned following widespread criticism over the agency’s failure to prevent an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a Butler, Pennsylvania rally earlier this month.

Cheatle’s resignation came just a day after facing harsh criticism from the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing on the Secret Service’s actions leading up to Trump’s July 13 rally, where the Republican presidential nominee narrowly avoided being killed by 20-year-old gunman Thomas Crooks.

During the Monday hearing, Cheatle dismissed calls for her resignation, asserting that she was the most qualified person to lead the Secret Service, and further incited outrage from the committee by refusing to answer questions about the Secret Service’s actions during Trump’s rally.

The criticism of Cheatle focused on the Secret Service’s failure to secure a roof that Crooks used as a sniper’s post to target Trump and rally attendees. The building, just 150 yards from the stage where Trump was speaking, had a clear line of sight to the stage.

Instead of extending its security perimeter to include the building complex, the Secret Service left the area’s security to local law enforcement officials.

Secret Service officials permitted Trump to take the stage despite reports of a suspicious person at the event.

This individual, later identified as Crooks, was killed by a Secret Service sniper after firing multiple rounds at Trump and after the sniper had already spotted Crooks on the roof before the shooting.

Cheatle faced widespread mockery after the shooting for justifying the decision not to station a law enforcement sniper on the roof Crooks climbed, despite rally attendees alerting the police to his actions.

On Tuesday, in a letter to Secret Service staff, Cheatle wrote, “In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that, I have made the difficult decision to step down as your Director.”

“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders and financial infrastructure. On July 13th, we fell short of that mission,” wrote Cheatle, who served in the agency for nearly 30 years.

“The scrutiny over the last week has been intense and will continue to remain as our operational temp increases,” she wrote. “As your Director, I take full responsibility for the security lapse.”

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appointed Secret Service Deputy Director Donald Rowe as acting director until President Joe Biden selects a permanent replacement.

In a statement, Biden thanked Cheatle for “her decades of public service,” and stated, “As a leader, it takes honor, courage, and incredible integrity to take full responsibility for an organization tasked with one of the most challenging jobs in public service.”

Biden also stated that he plans to find a replacement “soon.”

In response to Cheatle’s resignation, Trump wrote in a social media post, “The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me, and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy. It was my great honor to do so.”

Rep. James Comer (R-Kentucky), chairman of the House Oversight Committee and a vocal advocate for Cheatle’s resignation, stated that her departure would not end the panel’s push for “more accountability” from the Secret Service.

“While Director Cheatle’s resignation is a step toward accountability, we need a full review of how these security failures happened so that we can prevent them going forward,” said Comer.

Article by Riley Flynn