The United States Secret Service director told Congress on Monday the attempted assassination against former President Donald Trump was the “most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades” and took full responsibility for the lapses in security that day.
“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13th, we failed,” U.S. Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle testified before the House Oversight Committee. “As the Director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse. We are fully cooperating with ongoing investigations. We must learn what happened.”
In her first hearing before Congress, Cheatle also told the committee that she will move “heaven and earth” to ensure what occurred on July 13 will never happen again.
“Our mission is not political. It is literally a matter of life and death, as the tragic events on July 13th remind us of that,” she said. “I have full confidence in the men and women of the Secret Service. They are worthy of our support in executing our protective mission.”
SEE ALSO | Timeline: How the Trump assassination attempt unfolded at rally in Pennsylvania
This is yet another consequential week for the Secret Service, which is tasked with providing security to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his visit to Washington, D.C., something the director has been focused on while also overseeing the security in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention.
Cheatle is facing a grilling before the House Oversight Committee over how her agency handled security around the attempted assassination of Trump.
She has faced calls from multiple Republicans and at least one Democrat to resign after the former president was targeted at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
She has said she will not resign.
SEE ALSO | Secret Service faces scrutiny over attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump
Lawmakers on the House Oversight and Governmental Affairs Committee are going to press Cheatle on what went wrong, what the Secret Service knew and when they knew it.
The hearing room was packed, with standing room only, as opening statements were given by chairman James Comer, ranking member Jamie Raskin and Cheatle. House Speaker Mike Johnson was also in attendance.
Cheatle will also face questions about whether her agency denied former President Trump’s security detail resources it has requested in the two years before Saturday, as first reported by The Washington Post, something her agency initially denied but then admitted over the weekend.
In a statement to ABC News, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said, “In some instances where specific Secret Service specialized units or resources were not provided, the agency made modifications to ensure the security of the protectee. This may include utilizing state or local partners to provide specialized functions or otherwise identifying alternatives to reduce public exposure of a protectee.”
SEE ALSO | Secret Service spotted shooter on roof 20 minutes before gunfire erupted at Trump rally
“The American People have lots of questions, and they deserve answers,” the Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, said on “Fox News Sunday” when asked about Monday’s hearing.
In a rare bipartisan statement, the committee’s top Democrat, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, had joined Comer in demanding that Cheatle testify after the Department of Homeland Security asked that her appearance be delayed, resulting in Comer issuing a subpoena.
“Americans have many serious questions about the historic security failures that occurred at the campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle must appear before the House Oversight Committee without delay on Monday, July 22 to answer our many questions and provide the transparency and accountability that Americans deserve and that are at the foundation of our government,” they wrote.
The DHS inspector general has opened three separate investigations into what went wrong, the FBI is currently leading a criminal investigation and House Speaker Mike Johnson has pledged congressional resources for a separate investigation.
As the head of the agency, Cheatle said it was her responsibility to investigate what went wrong and ensure that it does not happen again.
“The buck stops with me,” she told ABC News Chief Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas in an exclusive interview last Monday. “I am the director of the Secret Service, and I need to make sure that we are performing a review and that we are giving resources to our personnel as necessary.”
Cheatle has been in Milwaukee the past week overseeing security for the Republican National Convention and met with the former president last Tuesday, according to a source familiar with the situation.
“Secret Service is not political,” she told ABC News. “Security is not political. People’s safety is not political. And that’s what we’re focused on as an agency.”
Republicans also signaled they would question her about past statements that promoting diversity in the agency was a top priority.
DHS pushed back against criticism of women in Trump’s security detail.
“In the days following the attempted assassination of former President Trump, some people have made public statements questioning the presence of women in law enforcement, including in the United States Secret Service,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and other senior leaders wrote in a statement. “These assertions are baseless and insulting.”
