Dan Bongino warns about declining Secret Service effectiveness and calls for urgent reforms after the attempt on Donald Trump’s life.
At a Glance
- The US Secret Service’s primary job is to protect current and former US presidents.
- An assassination attempt was made on Donald Trump’s life on Saturday.
- Public warnings about the gunman were apparently ignored or not acted upon.
- The Secret Service, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security are investigating the incident.
Declining Secret Service Effectiveness
Dan Bongino, formerly with the Secret Service, has raised concerns over the deteriorating condition of the agency since the reported assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. According to Bongino, both the agency’s effectiveness and its security measures have diminished, posing heightened risks to leaders’ safety. He suggested that the situation could worsen and urged that significant reforms be implemented at once to address these critical vulnerabilities.
Bongino emphasized the necessity for urgent action to restore the Secret Service’s operational capabilities and secure the well-being of political leaders.
The US Secret Service’s primary role is to protect current and former US presidents. Reports indicate that on Saturday, a shooter attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. This marked the first such attempt in 43 years since Ronald Reagan was shot. The gunman fired four shots from a rooftop vantage point in an area that was supposed to be cleared, raising serious questions about the Secret Service’s security measures.
Inadequate Response and Ignored Warnings
Public warnings about the gunman were apparently ignored or not acted upon. The shooter, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was caught on camera and managed to reach a rooftop and open fire despite rally attendees having passed through metal detectors. One spectator was killed, two others critically injured, and Trump was injured in the ear. Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle is to testify before a US House committee on 22 July regarding these oversight failures.
“The witness, who called himself Greg, said warnings that he and others gave were not acted upon by police, who he suggested did not know ‘what was going on’ and had poor visibility of the rooftop,” as reported by the BBC.
Rally attendees passed through rigorous security checks, but the gunman was still able to carry out his attack. Experts highlight the challenges of securing large political rally areas, a fact Bongino reiterated. The FBI has taken the lead in the investigation, describing it as an assassination attempt. The Department of Homeland Security also emphasized the importance of securing presidential candidates.
The energy is different today.
Patriots feel it.
A redline has been wiped out and eyes were opened yesterday.
Shitlib commies can pretend all they want that this was a huge “W” but the realistic ones know they awakened a sleeping giant. Just watch.— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) May 31, 2024
Future Implications and Need for Reforms
President Joe Biden has ordered an independent review of the rally’s security plan, and Republicans in the House of Representatives plan to hold hearings on the security failure. Security for Trump’s future campaign rallies is expected to be intensified, with a security detail comparable to a sitting president. The Secret Service has increased personnel and equipment and is cooperating with the FBI investigation. Additionally, Professor Dunn told BBC Radio 5 Live, “Trump’s quick reaction to duck after the first shots may have saved his life.”
“In that respect, he ‘clearly had been well trained by the Secret Service’,” Prof Dunn told BBC Radio 5 Live.
The Republican National Convention will proceed as planned, with Trump’s nomination speech on Thursday. Bongino continues to criticize the Secret Service’s response and actions, urging for immediate and essential reforms to prevent such security lapses in the future. The former agent’s warnings should not be taken lightly as they indicate the gravity of the current security landscape for political leaders in America.
