By Victor Nava. Media: Nypost
Senior-level Secret Service officials failed to share “classified threat information” regarding President Trump with those assigned to protect him during the Pennsylvania rally where he was nearly assassinated, according to a new congressional watchdog report.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed that the classified intelligence had been provided to Secret Service officials a full 10 days before the assassination attempt in Butler, on July 13, 2024. However, the agency’s “siloed practice for sharing” sensitive information meant that few individuals were aware of the threat against Trump’s life.
“[T]he Secret Service had no process to share classified threat information with partners when the information was not considered an imminent threat to life,” stated the GAO report, released on Saturday by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa).
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The report noted that “Secret Service and local law enforcement personnel central to developing site security plans for the rally were unaware of the threat,” explaining that members of the agency’s advance team assigned to the event in Butler had not received the relevant information.
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The report noted that “Secret Service and local law enforcement personnel central to developing site security plans for the rally were unaware of the threat,” explaining that members of the agency’s advance team assigned to the event in Butler had not received the relevant information.
The special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Pittsburgh field office, which oversees the district where the rally took place, told the GAO that he had not been informed about the threat either.
“He reported that if he had received the threat information, he would have requested additional assets, such as ballistic glass, additional drone mitigation, and a full counter-sniper advance team, among other assets,” the report explains.
The GAO contended that the Secret Service had “multiple opportunities to share this information” before the rally but “repeatedly failed to do so.”
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“One year ago, a series of bad decisions and bureaucratic handicaps led to one of the most shocking moments in political history,” said Sen. Grassley in a statement. “The Secret Service’s failure on July 13th was the culmination of years of mismanagement and came after the Biden administration denied requests for enhanced security to protect President Trump.”
“Americans should be grateful that President Trump survived that day and was ultimately reelected to restore common sense to our country.”
Grassley called the 98-page GAO report a “comprehensive overview of the failures that occurred prior to and on July 13th.”
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“More importantly, this report offers a clear path forward for the Secret Service to improve, so it can prevent another Butler from ever happening again,” he added. “This information would not have been possible without congressional oversight, and my work will continue.”
The GAO also criticized the roles and responsibilities of agents assigned to the Butler rally, noting that five of the 14 agents interviewed stated they relied on their own varying levels of protective experience for the event. The report also revealed that the Secret Service advance team was not required to review the operational plans of local law enforcement.
The Secret Service’s site agent at Butler, tasked with “identifying site vulnerabilities,” was new to her role, according to the report, which noted that the rally was “her first time planning and securing a large outdoor event.”
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Additionally, the report pointed out that the Secret Service lacked drones, which could have helped identify the shooter. The drones available had been previously allocated to the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. The remaining drones malfunctioned and were operated by inexperienced personnel.
In response, Secret Service Director Sean Curran stated on Saturday that the agency had reviewed the GAO report and was “committed to implementing all recommendations and have already made substantial progress on several of them.”
“Following the events of July 13, the Secret Service took a serious look at our operations and implemented substantive reforms to address the failures that occurred that day,” Curran said in a statement. “The Secret Service appreciates the continued support of President Trump, Congress, and our federal and local partners who have been instrumental in providing crucial resources needed to support the agency’s efforts.”
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