In a development that’s sure to raise eyebrows, at least five Secret Service agents have been placed on administrative leave following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. This isn’t just any routine disciplinary action—it’s a response to a catastrophic failure that nearly cost Trump his life and did tragically result in the death of firefighter Corey Comperatore. You’d think the Secret Service would have had this under control, but it seems they were asleep at the wheel.
Fox News confirmed that one member of Trump’s personal protective team and four agents from the Secret Service’s Pittsburgh Field Office, including the top dog, have been benched. These agents aren’t out of a job yet—they’re still on the payroll but are relegated to teleworking and barred from doing any fieldwork or investigations. Essentially, they’ve been sidelined while the agency tries to figure out how they let something this serious slip through the cracks.
The internal interviews to piece together how the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, managed to fire multiple shots from the AGR building were delayed because the FBI was running its own criminal investigation. Meanwhile, the clock was ticking, and confidence in the Secret Service’s competence was eroding.
Adding more fuel to the fire, Senator Josh Hawley, R-Mo., revealed that a Secret Service whistleblower has come forward. According to this whistleblower, higher-ups at Secret Service headquarters actively discouraged agents responsible for the rally from requesting additional security assets. If true, this is more than just an oversight—it’s a deliberate gamble with the former president’s life.
Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle didn’t stick around long enough to see the fallout—she resigned less than two weeks after the shooting. Lawmakers are now calling for heads to roll within the agency, arguing that mere suspensions aren’t enough for an incident of this magnitude.
Interestingly, it’s come to light that the Secret Service was aware of a specific threat from Iran targeting Trump before the Butler rally even took place. Yet, the event went forward as planned, with disastrous results. Why? That’s a question the ongoing investigations—both by the Secret Service and the FBI—aim to answer.
In their statement, the Secret Service assured the public that they are conducting a thorough review of what went wrong on July 13. Anthony Guglielmi, the agency’s chief of communications, stated, “We are examining the processes, procedures, and factors that led to this operational failure.” But let’s be honest, that’s just PR speak for “we messed up, and now we’re scrambling to figure out how.”
Crooks, the would-be assassin, managed to access the roof of a building and find a vantage point to fire at Trump, all while local law enforcement had flagged him as suspicious long before the shooting. Yet somehow, no one stopped him. This is the kind of bungling that’s sure to shake public trust in the agency responsible for protecting the nation’s leaders.
House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., didn’t mince words, calling for accountability within the Secret Service. “There must be accountability at the Secret Service for its historic failures that led to the attempted assassination of President Trump,” Comer said. Senator Hawley echoed the sentiment, pointing out that while the recent actions are a start, they’re far from sufficient.
As the investigations continue, it’s clear that the Secret Service has a lot to answer for. In a time when trust in institutions is already fragile, this debacle only adds to the growing sense that the people in charge are more interested in covering their tracks than doing their jobs.
