US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle admitted on Monday to the agency’s failure in preventing the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump during a rally in Pennsylvania.
“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders,” Cheatle stated during her testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
“On July 13, we failed,” she acknowledged. “As director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse.” Despite this, she rejected bipartisan calls for her resignation.
Cheatle described the attack on Donald Trump, who was slightly wounded in his right ear while speaking at the rally, as “the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades.”
“There clearly was a mistake, and we will make every effort to ensure this never happens again,” she pledged.
The incident occurred just minutes after Trump began his speech. Positioned on the roof of a nearby building, the assailant fired eight shots before being swiftly neutralized by a Secret Service sniper within 26 seconds of the first gunshot.
Two rally attendees were seriously wounded, and a 50-year-old firefighter, Corey Comperatore, of Freeport, Pennsylvania, was killed.
US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle is set to face intense scrutiny on Monday as she testifies before the House of Representatives Oversight and Accountability Committee regarding her agency’s failure to prevent the recent assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Pressure for her resignation has mounted from prominent Republicans like House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. In a separate hearing on Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray will also testify before the House Judiciary Committee.
