Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin questions Secret Service director about Trump rally assassination attempt

Maryland U.S. Representative Jamie Raskin (D - 8th District) called the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump "a grave assault on our democracy" in his opening remarks at a contentious U.S. House of Representatives committee questioning of U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle this morning. Cheatle faced heated questioning from members of both political parties seeking answers to security failures at the July 13, 2024 Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump and two rally attendees were wounded in the shooting, and a third attendee was killed. It was the first attempted assassination of a current or former U.S. President since 1981.

"We are united in condemning all political violence," Raskin said in his opening remarks, after U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R - KY 1st District) began the hearing by declaring bipartisan concern about the tragic events. Raskin pledged to seek explanations of the "shocking security failures" at the Trump rally, but - in terms of speaking time - his remarks placed greater emphasis on mass shootings in general, and the availability of AR-15 semi-automatic rifles in America. Before concluding his opening statement, Raskin called for a ban on the AR-15, "and other assault weapons."

Raskin recited the media narrative that has developed in the days since the assassination attempt, in regard to the shooter having been identified as a suspicious person long before the start of the rally. "Why was [Trump] allowed to take the stage with a suspicious person having been identified in the crowd?" Raskin asked.

Cheatle responded that a suspicious person is not the same as a threatening person in the view of the Secret Service. If Secret Service agents had been advised that the shooter had been deemed a threat, she said, Trump would not have been allowed to take the stage. 

Raskin asked if the Secret Service had denied any requests by the Trump campaign for additional security resources for the July 13 rally. "There were no assets denied for that event in Butler," Cheatle said. She confirmed to Raskin that the serial number on the shooter's weapon was the key to identifying him, as he was carrying no identification.

But the bulk of the answers sought by Raskin and other committee members were not provided by Cheatle. She repeatedly referred to being only "nine days out" from the incident, and being unable to answer critical questions until the completion of a Inspector General investigation, as well as an internal Secret Service investigation she confirmed is also taking place. It is not currently clear when either investigation will be complete, raising the possibility that existing security weak spots and lapses might not be identified even by the time a new president is elected, much less to protect candidates before Election Day.

Raskin asked Cheatle what her response would be to an American citizen who asked her, "What went wrong?" on the day of the rally. Cheatle again avoided answering the question with her "nine days out" excuse. Under questioning from Rep. Jim Jordan (R - OH 4th District), she also claimed to be unprepared to answer many obvious questions that she could have expected to be asked at today's hearing, including the type and number of requests for additional resources made by the Trump campaign. Exasperated as his initial question time expired, Jordan noted that Cheatle hadn't answered any of the pertinent questions asked by himself or Raskin.