Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies on Trump assassination attempt | CNN Politics

Lawmakers grill Secret Service director over Trump assassination attempt

Holmes Lybrand Marshall Cohen Hannah Rabinowitz Devan Cole Maureen Chowdhury
By Holmes Lybrand, Marshall Cohen, Hannah Rabinowitz, Devan Cole and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN
Updated 4:03 PM EDT, Mon July 22, 2024
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Most contentious moments from US Secret Service Director’s fiery House hearing
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Key takeaways from the House hearing with the Secret Service chief on the Trump rally shooting

From CNN's Marshall Cohen, Holmes Lybrand, Devan Cole and Hannah Rabinowitz
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC.
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC.
Samuel Corum/Getty Images

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on Monday faced frustrated House lawmakers from both parties, who grilled her over the stunning security failures that led to the assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

Cheatle acknowledged that there were “significant” problems at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, where the former president was shot in the ear, and she didn’t downplay the historical and political significance of the event.

Before Trump took the stage at the rally, the director said, the Secret Service had been notified “between two and five times” that there was a suspicious person in the area.

Yet one by one, as members of the House Oversight Committee tried to pry loose new information about the security breakdown and what is being done to ensure it never happens again, Cheatle repeatedly stonewalled lawmakers’ efforts to get answers and pointed to the ongoing FBI investigation.

The director also remained defiant in the face of bipartisan calls for her immediate resignation.

Here are key takeaways from the hearing:

  • Cheatle admits agency’s “colossal failure”: Cheatle acknowledged that the Trump assassination attempt was “the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades.” She later said it was the worst moment for the agency since the unsuccessful assassination attempt targeting President Ronald Reagan in 1981. But even with that historic failure under her watch, Cheatle was insistent that she won’t step down.
  • No resources withheld from Trump rally: Cheatle said that, “for the event on July 13, the assets that were requested for that day were given.” CNN has reported that there were previous events where the Secret Service denied Trump specific requests and supplemented them, in some instances, with local law enforcement. GOP Rep. Jim Jordan pressed Cheatle, asking if she was lying previously when the Secret Service said they had not denied security requests. “For the event in Butler, there were no requests that were denied,” she said.
  • Cheatle treads carefully with answers — and non-answers: The top Republican and Democrat on the House Oversight Committee peppered Cheatle with some of the biggest questions that are still unresolved: Were any Secret Service agents on the roof where gunman Thomas Crooks fired shots at Trump? Did the gunman fly a drone over the area before the rally began? In response to these questions, and more, Cheatle pivoted away and didn’t directly answer. Regarding Crooks’ possible drone, she confirmed that this is what the FBI told her, but said it was still being probed.

Read more about Cheatle’s testimony here.

GOP and Democratic leaders of House committee call on Secret Service director to resign in bipartisan letter

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand and Annie Grayer

Republican and Democratic leaders of the House Oversight Committee, Rep. James Comer and Rep. Jamie Raskin, sent an official letter calling for the resignation of Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle following Monday’s hearing.

During the hearing, Comer, who chairs the committee, said “I don’t think we’ve answered very many questions.”

“The American people have questions, they deserve answers. Congress deserves answers. You were subpoenaed today to provide answers. And ma’am, you did not do that,” he added.

As the hearing wrapped, Comer said he and Raskin would be “sending a letter requesting that you submit your resignation as a step towards accountability in what happened.”

Read the full letter below:

Raskin calls for Cheatle’s resignation

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand

Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democratic member of the House Oversight Committee, called for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign.

“I think that the director has lost the confidence of Congress at a very urgent” moment in history, Raskin said as the hearing ended.

The Maryland congressman is now the most notable Democrat to say Cheatle should resign.

Shooter was identified as a threat "seconds before the gunfire started," Secret Service director says

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand

When asked by GOP Rep. Russell Fry when Thomas Matthew Crooks, the man who attempted to kill Donald Trump, was identified as a threat, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said it was mere seconds before he started shooting at the former president.

“It’s approximately five minutes to where individuals relayed that there was an (issue) being worked at the three o’clock of the former president,” the lawmaker from South Carolina said, referring to Crooks’ location from Trump’s perspective. “But it was not phrased as a threat. It was just that something was being worked on.”

“When did he transform from suspicion to threat?” Fry asked.

“I believe that it was seconds before the gunfire started,” Cheatle said.

As she’s been peppered with questions from lawmakers suggesting differing timelines of when Crooks was on the roof or near the rally, Cheatle has given confusing answers regarding when and where the shooter was spotted.

Lawmakers in delegation visiting site of Trump assassination attempt saw multiple vulnerabilities

From CNN's Gloria Pazmino, Linh Tran and Laura Dolan

Several members of the bipartisan congressional delegation who visited the site of the failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump said they toured the rooftop where the gunman shot at the former president.

“One thing is clear, is for sure; it’s way too close,” Republican Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania said after touring the site in Butler, located in his home state.

Kelly and the other Republicans also questioned why a security agent wasn’t stationed on the water tower that had sightline to the entire location of the rally. 

“That water tower surveils the entire landscape,” Kelly said.

Former Navy Seal sniper and current Republican Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona said he felt they were being “lied to” and also questioned why a sniper wasn’t positioned on the tower. 

GOP Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida called the lack of coverage “unacceptable.”

He criticized US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle who said the slope of the roof was a safety factor in an interview with ABC News last week.

Democrats who joined the visit did not explicitly call for Cheatle’s resignation, but said the “person at the top” must ultimately “pay the price.”

Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi said law enforcement who led them on the site visit said there were significant communication breakdowns that day resulting in information not being shared between all the agencies that were working at the venue. 

Following the visit, Thompson said the Butler Farm Show location should have not been used for Trump’s rally, saying it was hard to secure due to its expansive layout.

Thompson said the nearby fairgrounds should have been used, considering it has hosted Trump rallies before and law enforcement was familiar with it. 

Shooter acted alone, Secret Service chief says

From CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz

The US Secret Service director said Monday that she believes the shooter at the Donald Trump rally acted alone, an assessment that matches what FBI officials have told the public about their investigation.

Under questioning from GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said that “at this time, we do not have that there were any other people engaged” in the shooting.

Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office, told reporters last week that investigators believe the shooter acted alone, but cautioned that the agency was still in the early stages of its investigation.

Secret Service director says she apologized directly to Trump after he survived assassination attempt

From CNN's Devan Cole

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said on Monday that she apologized directly to Donald Trump after the former president survived the assassination attempt against him earlier this month.

“Did you apologize to him directly, for nearly having President Trump killed?” Colorado GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert asked Cheatle.

“Yes, I did,” the director replied.

“I appreciate that. I appreciate that you recognize that this was your failure,” the congresswoman said.

Greene calls Cheatle "complete failure" as she presses her on whether shooting was a "conspiracy"

From CNN's Devan Cole

Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tore into US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on Monday, calling her a “complete failure” as she pressed the agency head over whether there was “a conspiracy to kill President Trump.”

She continued: “That means that you are a complete failure as the director of the Secret Service that people under your command don’t perceive a man laying on a roof with a direct line to the president with a gun – they don’t perceive that to be a threat, yet the people in the crowd do, how is that possible?”

Greene went on to ask Cheatle whether there was a “stand down order” on her agents’ response to the shooter before he began shooting at the rally.

“Was there a conspiracy to kill President Trump?” the congresswoman asked.

“Absolutely not,” Cheatle replied.

“Then how did this happen and why are you still sitting here not turning in your letter of resignation?” Greene said.

Republican lawmaker questions whether short agents should be on Trump’s detail

From CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz

GOP Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania continued a theme from some Republicans in today’s hearing, suggesting that Secret Service agents weren’t selected based on merit.

He asked the agency’s Director Kimberly Cheatle whether shorter agents should be assigned to protect Donald Trump, who is over six feet tall.

“I assign agents to work our protectees that are capable and have been trained,” she said.

The questions mirror criticisms from some on the right about whether the female US Secret Service agents assigned to Trump were adequately able to protect the former president because they were shorter than their male counterparts.

Perry responded, “I understand they’re trained…But if somebody’s seven feet tall and you’re five feet tall, there’s going to be a delta there that is problematic in protecting the protectant.”

“The agents that are assigned to our protectees are perfectly capable,” Cheatle said.

One GOP lawmaker is waiting for Cheatle's full testimony before calling for her resignation

From CNN's Gloria Pazmino

Republican Rep. Nick LaLota of New York said he doesn’t want Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign until she answers more questions.

LaLota said there needs to be some days of accountability before she “falls on sword.”

LaLota joined a group of bipartisan lawmakers visiting the site of the assassination attempt in Bulter, Pennsylvania, on Monday.

LaLota added that he wants to have a better understanding “what was on her mind during those decision-making processes that involved denying requests from agents within the Trump campaign who asked for additional security for events like this.”

More background: CNN reported over the weekend that Trump’s security detail had complained they were not being given enough resources and personnel by the Secret Service over the past two years, and the agency acknowledged Saturday it denied some requests.

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said resources were not denied for Trump’s rally on July 13, where the shooting occurred.

Secret Service director tells lawmakers she hasn’t visited Pennsylvania site of Trump shooting

From CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has not visited the site of the assassination attempt, she said during the hearing Monday.

“Have you visited the site,” Rep. Pat Fallon asked Director Cheatle.“No, I have not,” she said.

Secret Service told about a suspicious individual several times before shooting, Cheatle says

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand

US Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle testified that the agency was told of a suspicious individual “somewhere between two and five times” on the day of the Bulter, Pennsylvania, rally where Donald Trump was nearly assassinated.

Cheatle also said they are looking into whether there was a communication breakdown that day.

“Again, I’m not clear on the timeline of when the Secret Service (detailed to Trump) and the counter sniper were notified” of the individual, she added.

“I have to assume that they did not know that there was a threat when they brought the President out on the stage,” Cheatle said.

Catch up on key lines so far from the Secret Service director's testimony on Trump assassination attempt

From CNN staff
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle is sworn in before testifying before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing at the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC. 
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle is sworn in before testifying before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing at the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC. 
Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has sparked frustration among lawmakers at today’s House Oversight Committee hearing after repeatedly dodging questions over what happened during the rally, who was responsible for watching the roof where the shooter fired from and several other inquiries around the Secret Service’s failures.

In her opening remarks before the committee, Cheatle said the assassination attempt against Donald Trump was “the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades.” 

Cheatle said that despite the agency’s failure, she intends to stay on as director and stated: “I think I am the best person to lead the Secret Service at this time.”

Here are key lines from the hearing, so far:

  • Cheatle doesn’t answer why an agent wasn’t on the roof: “Can you answer why the Secret Service didn’t place a single agent on the roof?” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer asked. Cheatle responded, “We are still looking into the advance process and the decisions that were made,” the director responded, eliciting an audible reaction from people in the hearing room.
  • Secret Service did not deny any resources for rally security: Cheatle said that, “for the event on July 13, the assets that were requested for that day were given.” CNN has reported that there were previous events where the Secret Service denied Trump specific requests and supplemented them, in some instances, with local law enforcement. GOP Rep. Jim Jordan pressed Cheatle, asking if she was lying previously when the Secret Service said they had not denied security requests. “For the event in Butler, there were no requests that were denied,” she said.
  • Agency still investigating why threat of shooter wasn’t communicated: Pressed on questions of why the rally was allowed to continue even as people in the crowd could see the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, climbing on the roof in the moments before the shooting, Cheatle said they are still looking through communications that day with law enforcement on the ground. “I don’t know all of the communications” that day, she added.
  • Initial probe in the assassination attempt will take about two months: Cheatle said she expects the initial investigation from the agency into the assassination attempt to be completed in 60 days. The FBI and Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general are also investigating the shooting. She added that no one within the agency has been disciplined for their role the day of the shooting and that agents are still being interviewed.
  • Testy exchanges: GOP Rep. Nancy Mace told the director that she’s “full of sh*t,” ripping into the agency head over her alleged non-compliance with the committee’s probe into the assassination attempt Donald Trump.
  • Adjustments for Harris: Cheatle confirmed that the Secret Service has made adjustments to the security around Vice President Kamala Harris since Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. Cheatle added that security reviews have continued to be adjusted for the agency’s other protectees and protected sites in Washington, DC, since the shooting. 

"You are full of sh*t": GOP lawmaker rips into Secret Service director

From CNN's Devan Cole
Rep Nancy Mace attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on Monday.
Rep Nancy Mace attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on Monday.
Kevin Mohatt/Reuters

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace told the director of the Secret Service that she’s “full of sh*t” during Monday’s hearing, ripping into the agency head over her alleged non-compliance with the committee’s probe into the assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

Another member of the committee could be heard saying, “We have to maintain decorum in this committee, no matter how upset we get.”

Secret Service has adjusted Harris’ detail since Biden dropped out of race, director says

From CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz

Secret Service Director Kimberly Director Cheatle confirmed Monday that the Secret Service has made adjustments to the security around Vice President Kamala Harris since Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race Sunday.

Cheatle added that security reviews have continued to be adjusted for the agency’s other protectees and protected sites in Washington, DC, since the shooting. There were also additional reviews done before the Republican National Convention last week.

“We are already prepared for an eventual VP nominee, and we continue to make those assessments,” Cheatle said.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers remain frustrated by non-answers from director Cheatle

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand

More than two hours into today’s House hearing, lawmakers continue to express frustration over Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle’s failure to give answers to questions over the security failures that led to the near assassination of Donald Trump.

Both Republicans and Democrats called out Cheatle for refusing to answer questions over what happened during the rally, who was responsible for watching the roof where the shooter fired from and several other questions around the Secret Service’s failures.

Cheatle continued to cite ongoing investigations to explain why she couldn’t answer these questions.

Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona accused Cheatle of stonewalling.

“You should have come today, ready to give us answers,” Biggs said. “I call on you to resign today. Today.”

Even outside the hearing, lawmakers expressed their frustration with Cheatle.

Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee said that the committee isn’t getting answers from Cheatle and that she “absolutely” should resign and should have been fired last week.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: "We are flying blind"

From CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez slammed US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, saying her lack of answers about the assassination attempt is “simply not acceptable.”

The New York congresswoman said that lawmakers may need to consider policy or legislative changes as a result of the shooting.

Cheatle said that though a report will take about 60 days to finalize, “I’m not waiting for a report to take action.”

Cheatle says initial agency probe will take 60 days and no employees have been disciplined at this time

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC.
United Sates Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22 in Washington, DC.
Samuel Corum/Getty Images

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said she expects the initial investigation from the agency into the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump to be completed in 60 days.

The FBI and Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general are also investigating the shooting.

“Have any employees been disciplined for their role in (the) Bulter, PA incident?” GOP Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas said.

“No sir, not at this time,” she said. “We are still in the process of interviewing people.”

Cheatle is being grilled about the timeline of the Trump shooting. Here's a recap of how things unfolded 

From CNN's Renée Rigdon, Amy O’Kruk, Marco Chacon, Clint Alwahab, Lacey Russell, Louis Leeson, Mark Oliver and CNN Staff

The US Secret Service director has been grilled repeatedly during today’s House hearing about how the shooting during Donald Trump’s rally unfolded — and what her agents were doing before and after.

Through videos, maps and photos, CNN pieced together what occurred from the start of the rally to the chaotic moments when gunshots erupted to, ultimately, when Trump landed in Newark, New Jersey, early Sunday morning.

Here’s how the shooting unfolded:

6:05:12 p.m. ET: Trump starts addressing his supporters and speaks for roughly six minutes before the scene erupts into chaos.

6:09 p.m. ET: Video shows some attendees notice the gunman on the roof at least one minute and 57 seconds before the shooting begins, based on an analysis comparing this video to the moments in Trump’s speech. At least one law enforcement officer appears in the video to be walking around the building where the gunman is on the roof. You can see the gunman laying down on the roof crawling as people in the crowd shout out that there’s someone on the roof. Several rally attendees try to call attention to the gunman as Trump is speaking on the stage.

Trump is in the middle of speaking when someone in the crowd is heard saying, “He’s got a gun.” As the video captures someone in the crowd repeating, “On the roof. He’s got a gun,” three shots ring out. A pause and five more shots in rapid succession are heard, along with a final shot of a different tone. “Stay under here,” an attendee says in the video. 

6:11:33 p.m. ET: Trump pauses mid-sentence as shots ring out.

6:11:34 p.m. ET: Trump touches the right side of his face.

6:11:35 p.m. ET: Trump takes cover as US Secret Service agents rush to the podium to surround him. “Get down, get down, get down,” one says.

While the gunman is positioned outside the rally venue, the distance between him and where Trump is speaking is only approximately 400 to 500 feet. CNN has learned that the gunman accessed the roof by climbing a building AC unit, though the timing of this action is not known.

You can see a full visual timeline of the events before, during and after the assassination attempt here.

Cheatle says Secret Service is still figuring out why threat of shooter wasn't communicated

From CNN's Holmes Lybrand

When pushed over questions of why the rally was allowed to continue even as people in the crowd could see Thomas Matthew Crooks climbing on the roof in the moments before the shooting, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said they are still looking through communications that day with law enforcement on the ground.

“I don’t know all of the communications” that day, she said.

Cheatle also said they are “going back and looking at communications to know when the information about a suspicious person was passed to Secret Service personnel.” 

In the days since the assassination attempt, there have been questions about the lines of communication between the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies on the site.

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