The embattled head of the Secret Service faced a fresh chorus of calls to resign on Monday, adding to a political firestorm surrounding the agency just months before the US election.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle told lawmakers she took full responsibility for security lapses at a Pennsylvania campaign rally where former president Donald Trump was shot earlier this month. However, she also refused to disclose many specifics about the July 13 shooting, drawing ire from both Republicans and Democrats.
James Comer, a Kentucky Republican who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Reform set a combative tone off the bat. “Americans demand accountability, but no one has yet to be fired for this historic failure,” he said.
The Secret Service faces tough questions about how the shooter reached the rooftop, why the rally proceeded after the suspect was earlier identified as suspicious, and whether the agency has adequately guarded Trump.
US officials have said 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed up on a roof within sight of the outdoor stage at Butler, Pennsylvania, and fired an AR-556 style rifle, injuring Trump, killing an attendee and wounding two others. A Secret Service sharpshooter then killed Crooks.
In her appearance before the panel on Monday, Cheatle acknowledged failures leading up to the shooting. “The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders,” Cheatle said. “On July 13th, we failed.”
During her hours-long testimony, Cheatle said the Secret Service was made aware of a suspicious person between two and five times on the day of the rally, but declined to disclose many specifics around the incident.
Bipartisan Criticism
“I don’t think you’ve answered one question from the chairman, the ranking member, or me,” said Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican.
South Carolina Republican Nancy Mace told Cheatle she was “full of s***” after alleging that Cheatle had failed to cooperate with the panel’s requests for information.
Exasperation spanned the political spectrum. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, called for Cheatle’s resignation. Meanwhile, New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized Cheatle for outlining a 60-day timeline for a “mission assurance review.”
Cheatle spent more than 25 years at the Secret Service before becoming senior director of global security for PepsiCo. President Joe Biden named her Secret Service director in 2022.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Sunday launched an independent review led by former officials from Democratic and Republican administrations.