US SECRET SERVICE CHIEF SHOULD RESIGN – Kimberly Cheatle ignores call to resign
U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle rebuffed bipartisan calls to resign for security failures that allowed a would-be assassin to wound Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, and aggravating the lawmakers with her refusal to produce details about the incident.
The U.S. House of Representatives Oversight Committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, and top Democrat, Jamie Raskin have each called on Cheatle to step down.
During more than 4-1/2 hours of the proceedings, Cheatle called the July 13 shooting “the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades,” comparing the breakdown to the 1981 attempted assassination of former President Ronald Reagan.
Monday’s hearing marked the first round of congressional oversight of the attempted assassination at an outdoor campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump was wounded in the ear, one rally attendee was killed and another was injured.
The shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, was taken out by law enforcement officers.
Cheatle repeatedly declined to answer questions pertaining to the attempted assassination with regard to the breached security perimeter, potential threats that were apparent from the onset, the shooter’s involvement and the decisions of the Secret Service.
She cited multiple ongoing investigations, including an internal probe due to be completed within 60 days as the reason for her inability to provide answers.
On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray will appear before the House Judiciary Committee. House Speaker Mike Johnson is also due to unveil a bipartisan task force to serve as a nexus point for House investigations.