Phone calls this week between lawmakers and the heads of the Secret Service and FBI have done little to quell a growing litany of questions as to what actions law enforcement officers did and didn’t take to allow an assassination attempt on former President Trump.
New admissions that the Secret Service had flagged gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks as “suspicious” and a possible threat more than an hour before the Saturday shooting — and that Trump was still allowed on stage — has placed intense heat on the agency.
With more questions than answers at this point, Republicans have intensified calls for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s removal.
Cheatle so far has refused to step down, with the agency asserting that the “Continuity of operations is paramount during a critical incident,” according to a statement issued late Wednesday.
In one of the most explosive discoveries this week, law enforcement had identified Crooks as a person of interest at the Butler, Pa., rally 62 minutes before the gunman fired several shots at Trump.
Lawmakers are frustrated, in particular, about why Trump was allowed on the rally stage after law enforcement became aware of a suspicious person in the area.
Questions still swirl as to the reasoning behind no officers were sent to the roof of the building the gunman climbed ahead of the rally’s start, even after Crooks was flagged in the area.
Five days after Crooks attempted to kill Trump, federal investigators seem no closer to understanding the gunman’s motives.
Read more at TheHill.com
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