Hawley releases damning report on Secret Service failures related to PA assassination attempt

Investigations into precisely how a would-be assassin was able to come perilously close to killing former President Donald Trump during a July rally in Pennsylvania continue apace, with alarming revelations beginning to emerge.

As Fox News reports, last week, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) issued a report outlining whistleblower claims about advance knowledge of weakness and critical operational failures on the part of the U.S. Secret Service that led to the catastrophic events that put Trump in harm's way and resulted in the death of rally attendee Corey Comperatore and serious injuries to two others.

Hawley lets loose

The lawmaker's report went into great detail about the ill-fated Butler rally, and it included new allegations raised by a whistleblower with knowledge of the day's events.

Hawley's report was presented to the House Task Force on the Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump, and it underscored what he said was a “compounding pattern of negligence, sloppiness, and gross incompetence that goes back years, all of which culminated in an assassination attempt that came inches from succeeding.”

Citing his findings, Hawley declared the scenario that unfolded on July 13 as “the most stunning breakdown in presidential security since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan.”

After having paid a personal visit to the Butler site and conducting interviews with whistleblowers, Hawley stated that “the resulting findings are highly damaging to the credibility of the Secret Service and [the Department of Homeland Security].”

Specifically, the senator noted that, according to his source, the Secret Service Counter Surveillance Division failed to perform at typical evaluation of the rally site and was not present on the day of the event itself, that Secret Service personnel “declined multiple offers from a local law enforcement partner to employ drone technology,” and that agents in charge of security that day were told “not to request additional security resources because they would be denied,” among other damaging details.

Second attempt prompts further demands

Astoundingly, a second attempt on Trump's life was set to unfold last Sunday at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, and Hawley has since demanded answers from Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe about this separate apparent failure.

On Sept. 18, Hawley sent a letter to Rowe referencing additional whistleblower information about the latest attempt on Trump's life and demanding a prompt response to what he described as “troubling questions about Secret Service protocols” on the day in question.

The whistleblower informed Hawley that “there are 'known vulnerabilities' in the fence line surrounding the course” and that despite usual protocol requiring an agent to “post up” at such spots, no such action was taken on Sept. 15, allowing the would-be gunman to linger for roughly 12 hours.

Hawley also demanded to know whether agents swept the perimeter of the course before Trump arrived, whether canine units or Unmanned Aircraft System elements were used for monitoring purposes, and whether sufficient counter surveillance measures were taken to ensure Trump's safety.

Though Rowe has acknowledged substantial failings in regard to the Butler incident and declared the need for a “paradigm shift” within the agency, whether the Secret Service can finally start providing the degree of protection to which Trump is entitled remains to be seen.