Secret Service Director Stonewalls Lawmakers at Hearing on Trump-Assassination Attempt

Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle assured lawmakers that she takes full responsibility for the failed assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump at the first congressional hearing on the subject — but mostly refused to provide any details on what exactly went wrong, passing the buck instead to the FBI to provide specific information.

The House Oversight Committee brought in Cheatle on Monday to testify about the major security lapses leading up to the shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania less than two weeks ago. The hearing comes as the FBI, Department of Justice Inspector General, and the Secret Service itself conduct their own investigations into how Thomas Matthew Crooks, an untrained, 20-year-old local man, managed to climb onto a roof less than 150 yards from where Trump was speaking and fire multiple shots before he was stopped.

“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,” Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R., Ky.) said in his opening statement, setting the tone for the fiery hearing.