Months before the shooting at former President Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, Democratic Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson introduced a bill in April that would have removed Trump’s Secret Service detail.
The Disgraced Former Protectees Act was introduced by Democratic Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson of the House Committee of Homeland Security in April, with the bill aiming to remove “Secret Service protection for those who have been sentenced to prison following conviction for a Federal or State felony,” according to a press release from April. In light of the shooting at Trump’s rally, the importance of the Secret Service protection given to former presidents was demonstrated for all to see.
“This measure would apply to former President Trump. It also would apply to all Secret Service protectees convicted and sentenced under felony charges,” according to a fact sheet.
“Unfortunately, current law doesn’t anticipate how Secret Service protection would impact the felony prison sentence of a protectee—even a former President,” Thompson said in the press release. “It is regrettable that it has come to this, but this previously unthought-of scenario could become our reality. Therefore, it is necessary for us to be prepared and update the law so the American people can be assured that protective status does not translate into special treatment—and that those who are sentenced to prison will indeed serve the time required of them.”
Co-sponsors of the bill include Democratic Reps. Troy A. Carter Sr., Rep. Barbara Lee, Rep. Frederica Wilson, Rep. Yvette Clarke, Rep. Bonnie Coleman, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Joyce Beatty and Steve Cohen, according to the release.
Less than three months ago, @BennieGThompson attempted to revoke Trump’s Secret Service protection. https://t.co/UblqtaSU7E pic.twitter.com/t6QFjKsk4i
— Avik Roy (@Avik) July 14, 2024
The suspected shooter was killed by the Secret Service, with one spectator dead and two critically injured, the Secret Service said Saturday on X. Trump praised the Secret Service for their protection, thanking “The United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania,” he said in a Saturday post on Truth Social.
The Committee on Homeland Security and the Secret Service did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Featured image credit: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
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