Security Failures at Rally Place Secret Service in the Crosshairs of Agency Scrutiny
In the aftermath of an attempted assassination of Former President Donald J. Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Sunday, July 14, 2024, there are questions about a serious breach in the security protocols of the US Secret Service. The agency had the primary responsibility for securing the perimeter at the Butler Farm Show Grounds for the rally although the building that the gunman climbed on top of the roof was slightly outside the perimeter just a mere 164 yards (150 meters) from the stage where Trump stood behind the podium. The typical AR style rifle that was used by the shooter utilizes a .223 caliber round by which an experienced rifleman could easily engage a target up to 300 yards, nearly twice the amount of line-of-sight distance that the shooter had access to. The building that was utilized by the shooter was being used as a staging area for law enforcement and Secret Service personnel. In addition to the presence of law enforcement and Secret Service officers, it was easily accessible to many rally attendees who were passing by on their way to the rally site.
The shooter’s identity was later revealed to be 20-year-old Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, PA who had approximately 50 rounds in his immediate possession. The shooter was spotted climbing up to the roof by a ladder by several bystanders on their way to the event. When these bystanders reported their concerns to local law enforcement an officer climbed to the roof but quickly went back to the ground when the shooter turned to point the rifle at him. Within minutes the shooter began firing at Trump who was positioned behind the podium. In the aftermath of the shooting there was one fatality and another attendee seriously injured. It is speculated that the shooter missed delivering a fatal shot to Trump within just a few inches. After shots were fired, Secret Service agents with long rifles returned fire immediately neutralizing the shooter.
“Why was there not an immediate response to the threat especially when a law enforcement officer confirmed that a gunman was on the rooftop?”
Several questions are now being raised in the aftermath of shooting bringing serious scrutiny to the Secret Service agency security protocols. While the agency claimed that security initiatives were thorough in screening individuals at the event in collaboration with local law enforcement, the most glaring oversight in question regarded why the rooftop of the building utilized by the shooter not closely monitored. Video revealed that attendees and bystanders readily spotted the shooter climbing upon the roof and informed law enforcement. Why was there not an immediate response to the threat especially when a law enforcement officer confirmed that a gunman was on the rooftop? Additionally, such events utilize drone surveillance for additional security measures, but there was only a report of one helicopter that was being used to watch segments of the perimeter.
The day following the shooting, agency director Kimberly Cheatle said that there would be an independent review conducted under the order of President Biden. Cheatle has claimed responsibility for ensuring rally security. It is a common procedure for law enforcement and first responder agencies to submit to after action evaluation whenever there are failures in response protocols. The Secret Service is one of the leading security services in the federal government and is certainly not exempt from critical review. In addition to questioning the effectiveness of security protocols that were followed at the PA rally, there are questions from conservatives to whether any political bias could have contributed to poor performance outcomes (i.e., not providing enough security personnel or surveillance equipment, etc.). The Secret Service is tasked with the responsibility for providing security for current and former US presidents as well as presidential candidates regardless of the political views or party affiliation of their agents who serve. Therefore, we hope that their performance would be unbiased, when providing protection for former presidents and even sensational high profile candidates such as Trump. The agency claimed that they were operating in response to an elevated level of security risk with intelligence concerns over threats from Iran to assassinate Trump. Whatever the claims from either party, we hope that the independent reviews and the hearings in the following weeks to come will be completely transparent. Our elected officials and candidates deserve the highest level of protection that can be provided by the Secret Service.
“We’ve got to turn the rhetoric down; we’ve got to turn the temperature down in this country. ”
In addition to concerns over a breach in security protocols, it is of upmost importance that we also address any political or ideological public remarks made by elected officials in both parties. While we must uphold our freedom of speech rights, there should also be an accountability for those who are serving in office to be careful to refrain from any statements which can be perceived as an invitation to incite acts of violence. The hostile rhetoric in this election season by those claiming that Trump is an existential threat to democracy and with Biden’s recent remark about the need for Democrats to put him into the “bullseye” are doing little to help keep presidential candidates safe from deranged gunmen. 1. Such highly charged rhetoric only provides fuel for such violence against candidates and elected officials. House Speaker Mike Johnson who also called for a thorough investigation of the Secret Service’s procedures at the PA rally remarked: “We’ve got to turn the rhetoric down; we’ve got to turn the temperature down in this country. We need leaders in both parties, on both sides, to call that out…When the message goes out constantly that Donald Trump would be a threat to democracy and the Republic would end, it heats up the environment. We cannot do that, it’s simply not true.” 2. And I would also add to Johnon’s remarks that we as believers must also help to tone down emotional charged rhetoric and to pray for our elected officials in both parties. We need to pray for the protection of presidential candidates to include GOP candidate Trump and Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy.