The director of the Secret Service is stepping down following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, he said in an email to staff. The agency tasked with protecting current and former presidents There is a risk that we will not be able to fulfill our core mission.
Kimberly Cheatle, who had been director of the Secret Service since August 2022, had faced growing calls for her resignation and multiple investigations. How did the perpetrator get so close? He addressed the Republican presidential candidates at a field rally in Pennsylvania.
“I take full responsibility for any security failings,” she said in an email to staff on Tuesday. “In light of recent events, and with a heavy heart, I have made the difficult decision to step down as director.”
Cheatle’s resignation came a day after he appeared before a congressional committee and was criticized for hours by Democrats and Republicans alike for security failings. He called the assassination attempt on Trump the Secret Service’s “worst operational failure in decades” and said he took full responsibility for security failings, but angered lawmakers by refusing to answer specific questions about the investigation.
The gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, came within 135 metres (157 yards) of the stage where the former president was speaking and opened fire. Threat on President Trump’s life from Iran leads to extra security days before the July 13 rally for the former president.
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