Minutes after former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt, Republican Congressman James Comer called for an urgent hearing. He demanded that Kimberly Cheatle, the head of the Secret Service and a Biden appointee, testify before his committee to explain the security failure.
The public is questioning how the elite Secret Service, tasked with protecting former presidents, failed to prevent a gunman from targeting Trump. Speculations are rife that the Biden administration may have denied additional security for Trump. Other reports suggest that the Secret Service might not have considered Trump to be in danger because he is a “former president.” Cheatle was compelled to address the significant security lapse that led to the shooting and the unfortunate death of a bystander.
“I’m being told that the shooter was actually identified as a potential person of suspicion. Units started responding to seek that individual out,” Cheatle told ABC News. “Unfortunately, with the rapid succession of how things unfolded, by the time that individual was eventually located, they were on the rooftop and were able to fire off at the former president.” …
“That building in particular has a sloped roof at its highest point. And so, you know, there’s a safety factor that would be considered there that we wouldn’t want to put somebody up on a sloped roof. And so, you know, the decision was made to secure the building, from inside,” she said. [Source: Fox News]
While Cheatle accepted responsibility, stating that the “buck stopped” with her, many perceived her comments as excuses. She mentioned that law enforcement identified the gunman as a “potential person of suspicion” but claimed they were hindered by the rapid unfolding of events. In reality, police spotted the gunman 30 minutes before Trump’s speech, which should have been sufficient time to apprehend him.
Cheatle also justified the absence of police on the roof where the gunman positioned himself, citing the roof’s slope as a reason. That doesn’t sound like a legitimate reason not to secure the building, does it? Even as the Biden administration official poured out excuses, more damning news came out.
According to the outlet, an officer from the Butler Township Police had climbed on a fellow officer’s shoulders to check out the roof of the building moments before the shooting, but backed away after Crooks pointed the rifle at him…
The source also alleged the Secret Service sniper who killed Crooks did not take the shot immediately at Crooks because he knew the local sniper team was supposed to be on that roof, and he had to “deconflict.”
“Complete shit show and failure,” the source wrote in the text. [Source: Breitbart]
It seems this was a total breakdown of basic security procedures and protocols. The police saw the gunman on the roof but fled like cowards. Why didn’t that officer immediately report it to the snipers? The Secret Service sniper saw the gunman but didn’t know if it was one of the police who were stationed inside the very building Crooks used to shoot at Trump.
This is wildly unacceptable. A man was pointing a gun at President Trump and several police and agents failed to do their job. Only a slight turn of the head ensured Trump is alive today.
Many people want answers from the office who found the gunman but did not intervene. Even the FBI is outraged.
Sources tell Fox News that FBI agents are interviewing members of local law enforcement, specifically the officer who saw shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks armed, but retreated away from the building. Crooks opened fire literally seconds later, according to law enforcement sources.
There is great frustration in the law enforcement community over the actions of this officer, sources familiar say. [Source: Fox News]
Apparently, this officer drew the attention of the gunman away from Trump. Yet he jumped down to avoid getting shot by Crooks. This officer could have prevented the shooting but did not. It is unknown if, after finding the gunman, this officer bothered to notify anyone.
It’s abundantly clear that both local police and the Secret Service failed miserably. And leadership from both groups need to be held accountable.
Author: Bo Dogan
