It has been reported that the new director of the Secret Service, Ronald Rowe, played a key role in pulling security from President Trump during critical times. This news comes on the heels of former Director Kimberly Cheatle’s departure, with details emerging that both Cheatle and Rowe denied Trump’s team additional security personnel despite multiple death threats.
The report uncovers that Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe was directly involved in denying Trump’s team the full array of Secret Service resources. This included additional counter-snipers who could have potentially stopped a gunman before he opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13th. Several sources familiar with the agency’s internal operations revealed Rowe’s close collaboration with Cheatle to turn down requests for essential security measures like magnetometers and additional agents.
To put this in perspective, the drive time from Washington D.C. to Butler is approximately four and a half hours. Despite the distance, Rowe ordered that Secret Service snipers not attend Trump rallies outside the driving range of the agency’s headquarters. This decision significantly compromised the safety of President Trump and his supporters at large outdoor events.
The implications of these decisions are profound. Recently, Ronald Rowe and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate appeared before a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security and Government Affairs committees. They were expected to answer questions about this historic security failure and the ongoing investigation by the Bureau.
During the U.S. House Oversight Committee hearing, chaired by Republican Jim Jordan (R-OH), it was revealed that the 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Crooks, had been flying a reconnaissance drone near the rally site hours before the attack without any intervention. Authorities also found a remote detonator linked to Crooks’ vehicle, which they believe he intended to use to distract counter-snipers while he fired at President Trump.
Security lapses were not isolated incidents. Another concerning event occurred when President Trump was scheduled to speak at a national Bitcoin conference in Nashville. Secret Service agents kept Trump off-stage as they located two individuals who had bypassed security checks. Though these individuals were later determined not to be threats, the breach underscored the ongoing risks and apparent gaps in security protocols.
The American public deserves accountability for these security failures. The safety of a former President, especially one as high-profile and controversial as Donald Trump, should never be compromised. As more details emerge, it is crucial that those responsible for these lapses are held accountable to ensure such risks are not repeated.
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