US Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle admitted to Congress on Monday that she and her agency failed when a would-be assassin wounded Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a July 13 campaign rally in Pennsylvania this week.
“We failed. As the director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse,” Cheatle, who faces Republican calls for her removal, said in testimony before the House of Representatives Oversight Committee.
“The assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump on July 13th is the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades,” Cheatle said.
In the face of Republican claims that the Secret Service denied resources to protect Trump, she said security for the former president had grown ahead of the shooting.
“The level of security provided for the former president increased well before the campaign and has been steadily increasing as threats evolve,” Cheatle said. “Our mission is not political. It is literally a matter of life and death.”
Monday’s hearing marked the first round of congressional oversight of the attempted assassination. On Wednesday, FBI director Christopher Wray will appear before the House Judiciary Committee. And House Speaker Mike Johnson is also due to unveil a bipartisan task force to serve as a nexus point for House investigations.
Cheatle has resisted calls for her resignation from top Republicans including Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Republican House Oversight Committee James Comer echoed those calls at the hearing.
“It is my firm belief, director Cheatle, that you should resign,” the Kentucky Republican told her. “The Secret Service has thousands of employees and a significant budget. But it has now become the face of incompetence.”
Democratic Representative Gerry Connolly said, “Unacceptable incidents like this one highlight the fact that we are an increasingly polarised nation experiencing heightened political tensions.”
The shooting at an outdoor campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, wounded Trump in the ear, killed one rally attendee and injured another. The suspected shooter, 20-year-old nursing home aide Thomas Crooks, was killed by law enforcement. It is not clear what his motive was for the shooting.
The incident has angered lawmakers, who say the suspect was able to get within range of Trump on the rooftop of a nearby building because of security lapses at Cheatle’s agency, which is charged with protecting presidents and former presidents.
The House Judiciary Committee said last week that it has evidence the Secret Service was not properly resourced for Trump’s rally, because of staffing shortages created by a rival campaign event in Pittsburgh with Jill Biden and a Nato summit held days before in Washington.
Cheatle told lawmakers that the first lady agency protects 36 individuals daily, as well as world leaders who visit the United States including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to address a joint session of Congress this week.
President Joe Biden on Sunday ended his floundering reelection bid, endorsing Vice-President Kamala Harris to succeed him as candidate. He vowed to serve through the end of his term on January 20, 2025.