After Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testified that her agency “failed” to defend former President Donald Trump from a would-be assassin’s bullet earlier this month, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) ripped into her.
In remarks delivered prior to the House Oversight Committee hearing on Monday, Comer asserted that the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania was “preventable.”
He cited the fact that several agents, local police officers, and rallygoers had observed gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks hours before he ascended the roof of a nearby building and fired, injuring Trump in the ear, wounding two others, and killing fire chief Corey Comperatore.
He, along with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), also urged Cheatle to resign.
“The Secret Service has a zero-fail mission, but it failed on July 13th and in the days leading up to the rally. The Secret Service has thousands of employees and a significant budget, but it has now become the face of incompetence. The Committee has a long track record of providing oversight of the Secret Service. Our predecessors, both Jason Chaffetz and Elijah Cummings, among others, worked together to issue warnings and recommendations to address obvious shortcomings in the agency’s makeup and operations. Unfortunately, those warnings and recommendations have gone unheeded.” Comer said.
“A former president and current candidate for president was shot in the head by a sniper within 500 feet of the podium. This is unacceptable, and we are concerned the Secret Service lacks the proper management to keep protectees safe from bad actors. Americans demand answers, but they have not been getting them from the Secret Service. We are instead learning about new facts about the events surrounding the attempted assassination every day from whistleblowers and leaks. Americans demand accountability. But no one has yet to be fired for this historic failure.” he continued.
“Today’s witness, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, is here under subpoena to answer questions about how the agency failed President Trump and the victims who attended the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. It is my firm belief, Director Cheatle, that you should resign. However, in complete defiance, Director Cheatle has maintained she will not tender her resignation. Therefore, she will answer questions today from members of this Committee seeking to provide clarity to the American people about how these events were allowed to transpire.” Comer concluded.
[READ MORE: Senior Democrat Jim Clyburn Predicts Major Election Loss if Dems Replace Biden Via Contested Convention]
