Sep
29
Senate Report on Secret Service Failure in Butler County
“A bipartisan Senate report released Wednesday blasts the U.S. Secret Service for several significant failures that led to the near-fatal assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump in Butler County, Pennsylvania, over the summer.” — Casey Harper, The Center Square
The interim report referenced in the above quote was released by Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Rand Paul (R-KY), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Ron Johnson (R-WI). Key findings were in the following areas:
o USSS failed to clearly define responsibilities for planning and security at the July 13 rally
o USSS failed to ensure the AGR Building was effectively covered
o USSS failed to effectively coordinate with state and local law enforcement
o USSS failed to provide resources for the July 13 rally that could have enhanced security
o USSS failed to communicate information about the suspicious person to key personnel and failed to take action to ensure the safety of former President Trump
o USSS’s counter drone system experienced technical problems that left it inoperable for hours
o Several USSS officials reported experiencing technical problems with their radios at the rally, and told the Committee such problems are common for USSS
Here are a few key quotes from the report and its authors:
“Approximately two minutes before shots were fired, the USSS Security Room, located on the rally grounds, was told that there was an individual on the roof of the AGR building. Shortly before shots were fired, a USSS counter sniper observed local officers running towards the AGR building with guns drawn.”
“From planning missteps, to the siloed and flawed communication to the lack of effective coordination between law enforcement, to the breakdowns in technology, the Secret Service’s failures that allowed an assassination attempt on former President Trump at his July 13 rally were shocking, unacceptable, and preventable – and they led to tragic consequences.” (Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI))
“What happened on July 13 was an accumulation of errors that produced a perfect storm of stunning failure. It was a tragedy and completely preventable from the outset.” (Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT))
I have no personal comments to add other than to echo what the authors of the bipartisan report have concluded.
The report’s key recommendations are (not surprisingly) in the areas of:
o Planning and Coordination
o Responsibility
o Communications
o Intelligence
o Resources
For more information, you can read Harper’s article and/or the press release/summary provided by Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs. (I pulled the above details and quotes from these two sources.) The latter document also links to the full report and interview transcripts.
A bill that would give presidential-level Secret Service protection to all nominated presidential and vice presidential candidates — including former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance — has unanimously passed both the House and Senate and now awaits President Joe Biden’s signature.
