The Secret Service has now admitted that it denied some requests for increased security at events held by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's campaign in the years leading up to a recent assassination attempt on him.
Initially, the law enforcement agency had denied turning down such requests following the July 13 attack. However, late Saturday, a week after the attempt on Trump's life, the Secret Service conceded that it had indeed declined some requests for heightened security around the former president.
This reversal is expected to be a major topic during a congressional hearing on Monday, where Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle will testify before lawmakers who are upset about the security breaches that enabled a 20-year-old gunman to climb onto the roof of a nearby building at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and fire his weapon.
Trump sustained an injury to his right ear, one rally attendee was killed, and two others were injured.
“The Secret Service has a vast, dynamic, and intricate mission. Every day, we work in a dynamic threat environment to ensure our protectees are safe and secure across multiple events, travel, and other challenging environments,” stated Anthony Guglielmi, the agency’s chief spokesperson, in a statement released late Saturday to The Washington Post. The newspaper was the first to report on the agency’s reversal, which was based on detailed questions submitted to the agency.
