Current:Home > StocksSecret Service admits some security modifications for Trump "were not provided" ahead of assassination attempt -Summit Capital Strategies
Secret Service admits some security modifications for Trump "were not provided" ahead of assassination attempt
View
Date:2025-04-22 10:40:41
The Secret Service admitted some security modifications for Trump "were not provided" ahead of the assassination attempt against him last Saturday.
On Sunday, the Secret Service acknowledged that in some instances when the Secret Service did not provide "specific specialized units or resources," the agency made "modifications to ensure extra protection" of former President Donald Trump ahead of the assassination attempt last week, as calls for an investigation continue.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement Sunday such modifications could include "utilizing state or local partners to provide specialized functions or otherwise identifying alternatives to reduce public exposure of a protectee."
A person briefed on the matter confirmed to CBS News the Trump campaign has been asking for additional Secret Service resources since he left office in 2021.
The Secret Service's decisions on Trump's protection were first reported by The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle is expected to testify Monday before the House Oversight Committee. On Sunday evening, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appointed a bipartisan panel to conduct a 45-day independent review of the Trump assassination attempt. He named former DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, former homeland security adviser Frances Townsend, former Judge and Deputy Attorney General Mark Filip and former Delaware homeland security official David Mitchell to the panel.
A day after the shooting, Guglielmi called it "categorically false" that additional security for Trump had been requested and denied.
Mr. Trump was grazed by a bullet, a bystander was killed and two others were wounded in the shooting. Secret Service snipers shot and killed the suspect, later identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.
The Secret Service bolstered the former president's security footprint in June, adding a counter assault team personnel, drones and robotic dogs. An official familiar with the matter confirmed to CBS News that the enhancement of Trump's Secret Service assets was connected to the Iranian threat stream.
A Trump source familiar with the planning and security of Trump political rallies, and who spoke on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that there had been concerns over the last two years about a lack of additional resources and support from the Secret Service.
The Trump campaign requested additional security measures for some events, including more metal detectors at a May rally in the Bronx, which caused long lines for thousands of attendees. The Trump campaign also requested metal detectors when the former president attended his son Barron's high school graduation in May. But the Secret Service initially declined to provide them because it was not a political event. The agency ultimately added metal detectors and other security measures before Barron Trump's graduation ceremony took place.
The Secret Service's handling of the security at the Trump rally on July 13 has prompted questions, particularly after more information has emerged about the timeline of the shooting. Three sources familiar with a law enforcement briefing to members of Congress last week said that the Secret Service was notified by the Pennsylvania State Police of a suspicious person with a rangefinder on the grounds at 5:51 p.m. on Saturday — about 20 minutes before the gunman opened fire. At that time, local law enforcement did not know the suspicious person had a gun, according to a local law enforcement officer and the Butler County sheriff.
Cellphone video also shows rally attendees pointing toward the shooter, and trying to alert authorities to his presence — a full two minutes before he opened fire on the former president.
Law enforcement is still investigating a possible motive.
A growing number of Republicans have called for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle's resignation in the wake of the shooting.
At last week's Republican National Convention, GOP Sens. Marsha Blackburn and John Barrasso posted video on social media appearing to show several members of Congress confronting Cheatle. In the video posted by Blackburn, which also shows Sen. James Lankford, Barrasso demands a "resignation or full explanation" from Cheatle. After fielding a number of questions as senators criticized her, Cheatle said in the video, "I don't think that this is the place to have this discussion."
House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner, a Republican, told "Face the Nation" that Cheatle's "failures are just absolutely outrageous and incredible."
"If he had been killed, they would be culpable," Turner said about the Secret Service. "Every aspect of their failure leads right to giving an opportunity to shoot Donald Trump. And that is going to be the major issue."
According to Trump's son, Eric Trump, the former president did not get stitches but has a "nice flesh wound." Rep. Ronny Jackson, Trump's former White House physician, said Saturday in a letter that he had treated Trump and said the former president is "doing well."
"The bullet passed, coming less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head, and struck the top of his right ear," Jackson said in the letter. "The bullet track produced a 2 cm wide wound that extended down the cartilaginous surface of the ear."
Trump made his first public appearances since the shooting at last week's Republican National Convention, and he held another rally on Saturday. He referenced the shooting several times, saying he "took a bullet for democracy."
- In:
- United States Secret Service
- Donald Trump
Pat Milton, an award-winning journalist, is the senior producer of the CBS News Investigative Unit.
veryGood! (99176)
Related
- San Francisco names street for Associated Press photographer who captured the iconic Iwo Jima photo
- WNBA All-Star game highlights: Arike Ogunbowale wins MVP as Olympians suffer loss
- 8.5 million computers running Windows affected by faulty update from CrowdStrike
- Delta Air Lines says cancellations continue as it tries to restore operations after tech outage
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- Evan Mobley and Cleveland Cavaliers agree to max rookie extension
- Here’s what to do with deli meats as the CDC investigates a listeria outbreak across the U.S.
- What to know about the Kids Online Safety Act and its chances of passing
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- How RHONJ’s Teresa Giudice Helped Costar Danielle Cabral With Advice About Her Kids’ Career
Ranking
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- Village in southern New Mexico ravaged by wildfires last month now facing another flash flood watch
- Travis and Jason Kelce team up with General Mills to create Kelce Mix Cereal: Here's what it is
- Here are the full 2024 Emmy nominations, with Shogun, The Bear leading the pack
- Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
- Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich sentenced by Russian court to 16 years in prison
- San Diego Zoo's giant pandas to debut next month: See Yun Chuan and Xin Bao settle in
- Why Caitlin Clark wasn't in WNBA 3-point contest tonight: 'I need a break'
Recommendation
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
Evan Mobley and Cleveland Cavaliers agree to max rookie extension
Journalist ordered to pay over $5,000 to Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni for making fun of her height
Gabby Douglas Reveals Future Olympic Plans After Missing 2024 Paris Games
Israel lets Palestinians go back to northern Gaza for first time in over a year as cease
The Barely Recognizable J.D. Vance as Trump’s Vice Presidential Running Mate
In New Mexico, a Walk Commemorates the Nuclear Disaster Few Outside the Navajo Nation Remember
Pastor Robert Jeffress vows to rebuild historic Dallas church heavily damaged by fire