CNN host Kate Bolduan pushed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to answer to the Secret Service’s response in the lead up to the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
The Secret Service’s protection during the Saturday rally has come under intense scrutiny given that a gunman had the ability to fire into the arena, leaving one dead and others injured. Agents fatally took out the alleged shooter, who has been identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, as he opened fire from the roof of a nearby building.
Mayorkas ensured an independent review is being conducted into the incident ahead of the Republican National Convention.
“Do you call this a security failure on the part of the Secret Service?” Bolduan asked.
“An incident like this cannot happen, that is precisely why President [Joe] Biden directed an independent review so that that review, its conclusions and its recommendations have the full confidence of the American public,” Mayorkas said. “We will carefully analyze in an independent and thorough fashion what occurred and recommendations will be made. Those recommendations will be implemented. We are in a dynamic threat environment, we adapt to that dynamism every single day and changes have been made to the Republican National Convention just as the eighteen month planning calls for. It calls for changes based on changes in the threat environment, and that is where we are now.”
‘Who Failed?’: CNN Host Presses Mayorkas On Secret Service’s Response To Trump Assassination Attempt pic.twitter.com/Kf4Hpd88AZ
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Bolduan questioned the DHS secretary on who particularly failed to ensure the safety of Trump and the participants in the rally.
“If you don’t want to say because a review is still happening, who? Who failed in terms of the security around this rally? Do you agree that it was a failure?” Bolduan asked. “You said this cannot happen. But first and foremost, before you make sure you make the changes, you have to acknowledge what a failure this was.”
“Kate, when I say that something like this cannot happen, we are speaking of a failure. We are going to analyze through an independent how that occurred, why it occurred, and make recommendations and findings to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” the DHS Secretary said. “I couldn’t be clearer.”
The Secret Service immediately rushed to surround Trump and escort him from the podium after bullets were fired into the crowd, forcing Trump to duck down with a bloody ear. He raised his fist in the air and told the crowd to “fight” as the Secret Service began escorting him away from the rally.
Republican Florida Rep. Mike Waltz accused Mayorkas of refusing multiple requests to heighten security presence at Trump’s rallies. Mayorkas called the accusations “baseless” irresponsible” and “unequivocally false.”
Mayorkas further expressed confidence in the Secret Service’s ability to work with local, state and federal law enforcement agents to protect the former president and other political figures at the RNC Convention and elsewhere.
A spokesperson reportedly did not breach the building where the shooter fired from, but rather relied on local law enforcement to investigate the site.
“Are you okay with that?” Bolduan asked.
“Kate, let me make two points. Number one, and let me repeat, that we will defer to an independent review of the facts to determine what those facts are and find these recommendations based on it. Number one. Number two, in campaign events historically and now, including the conventions now, we work collaboratively with our federal partners, along with our state and local partners. These are very, very significant undertakings and we work seamlessly and closely with our partners across the national security, homeland security enterprise,” Mayorkas replied.
U.S. Secret Service Director Kimbery Cheatle vowed to review the incident to prevent anything like this “from ever happening again” in a statement Monday morning.
Former Secret Service agents Evy Poumpouras and Dan Bongino separately criticized the response of the agents during the rally. Bongino called the response an “abysmal failure,” and called for a stronger security force.
(Featured image credit: DHS photo by Tia Dufour)
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