The House of Representatives grilled Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle Monday at an Oversight and Accountability Committee Hearing where many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle expressed discontentment with her answers.
One Democrat demanded her resignation due to security lapses that allowed a shooter to attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump earlier this month.
Investigation Timeline Concerns
Many members balk at Cheatle’s statement that a full investigation into the breach will take 60 days, and others paint Cheatle as incompetent.
Calls for Resignation
Cheatle has claimed since the incident occurred that she will not resign.
While most calls for her resignation were registered by Republicans early last week after the details of the incident became known, Democratic Rep. Ro Khann from California is the first of his party on the Committee to demand her resignation, claiming that she is not what America needs right now amidst the current political climate.
Immediate Response from Committee Leaders
In the days following the assassination attempt, both top members of the Committee, Chairman James Comer (R-KY) and Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) issued a joint letter requesting that Cheatle appear before the committee “without delay.”
The joint letter stated, “Americans have many serious questions about the historic security failures that occurred at the campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.”
Pressure Mounts on Cheatle
As more details have come to light, the pressure has increased on Cheatle to address the near-fatal lapses of protective measures that are considered commonplace for a high-level security detail, including sweeping nearby rooftops for threats, for example.
Unsatisfactory Hearing Outcome
Cheatle’s admissions at the hearing were unsatisfactory according to Chairman Comer, who accused Cheatle of being more forthright in a media interview with ABC than she was with the nation’s top lawmakers in Monday’s hearing.
Comer said, “You’ve answered more questions with an ABC reporter than you have with Members of Congress. We have a lot more questions. The American people are demanding that we get answers to those questions. And that’s what the purpose of this hearing is today.”
Growing Impatience from Lawmakers
Republican Pete Sessions from Texas grew impatient with Cheatle, who put off revealing the timeline and explaining the breach.
He said, “Tell us what went wrong…Tell us, and don’t try and play a shell game with us. Do you have the ability to effectively, as the director of this Agency, to understand what went wrong and at least tell us, ‘I do or I don’t know what I’m doing?”
Cheatle’s Repeated Explanation
In response to Session’s line of questioning, Cheatle repeated the same explanation she used multiple times in her responses to lawmakers’ questions, “I am asking those same questions, sir, and I assure you, when I have a full and complete report of exactly what happened, there will be accountability, and we will make changes.”
Criticism from Progressive Democrats
Even progressive Democratic squad member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) took issue with Cheatle’s lack of response to the Committee’s questions. She called Cheatle’s expected timeline of 60 days to have a report unacceptable.
Ocasio-Cortez said, “We are currently in the midst of…an especially concentrated presidential campaign. So the idea that a report will be finalized in 60 days, let alone prior to any actionable decisions that would be made is simply not acceptable.”
“It has been ten days since an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States, regardless of party. There need to be answers.”
Revelation About the Shooter
In the hearing, Cheatle revealed that the Secret Service had identified shooter Thomas Crooks as a suspicious individual and deployed agents to interview Crooks before Trump took the stage. Cheatle could not confirm or deny whether that interview took place.
Concerns Over Lack of Knowledge
Rep. Andy Biggs balked at the suggestion that Cheatle did not know whether the agents failed at this critical juncture. “They were sent to interview the individual who’s scampered up in camo on top of a roof within 130 yards of his target. And did they? Did your team get there? When did your team get there to conduct that interview?”
Khanna’s Call for Resignation
In a prolonged discourse between Rep. Khanna, the first Democrat who called on Cheatle to resign, Khanna called his position “not political” and stated, “I just don’t think this is partisan. If you have an assassination attempt on a president, a former president, or a candidate, you need to resign.”
“You cannot go leading a secret service agency when there is an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate.”
Cheatle’s Commitment to Accountability
Cheatle responded to Khanna as she has responded to past calls to resign, “I am dedicated to finding the answers to what happened. And like every secret service agent, we don’t shirk from our responsibilities.”
“I will remain on and be responsible to the Agency, to this Committee, to the former President and to the American public.”
Khanna’s Final Remarks
Rather than leaving it at that, Khanna said, “Do you really genuinely in your heart believe that you being in this role is what’s right for America at this moment? I mean, do you think there are people who are Trump supporters who have confidence in you?”
“We’ve got to have agencies in this country that transcend politics, that have the confidence of independents, Democrats, Republicans, progressives, conservatives.”
