The U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has expressed her support for an independent security review of the recent assassination plot against former President Donald Trump. Cheatle stated, “We are eager to cooperate with the independent security review of the U.S. Secret Service’s action related to the July 13 assassination attempt of former President Trump in Butler. I look forward to the panel examining what happened and providing recommendations to help ensure it will never happen again.”
The agency is taking steps to review their actions internally and is committed to working quickly and transparently with other investigations by Congress, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General. Cheatle emphasized the importance of the Secret Service’s mission and ensuring the safety and security of their protectees.
The independent review panel will consist of former President George W. Bush’s Homeland security adviser Frances Townsend, former federal judge Mark Filip, former Maryland State Police superintendent David Mitchell, and former DHS secretary Janet Napolitano. They will have 45 days to review the Secret Service’s policies and procedures before and after the assassination attempt by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced the independent review and stated that additional experts may be added to the panel in the coming days. The bipartisan group aims to identify improvements that the Secret Service can implement to enhance their work and prevent future incidents like the one on July 13.
Cheatle is scheduled to testify before the House Oversight Committee on Monday. The Secret Service continues to evolve its explanation of the events surrounding the attempted assassination, and all Americans share a concern about the safety of public officials. The panel is determined to work together to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.
