Pittsburgh – Former President Donald Trump, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, has vowed to resume outdoor rallies after surviving an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on July 13 and after being asked by the Secret Service to move campaign events indoors in what some experts see as an admission of failure.
Writing in capital letters on his platform, “Truth Social,” Trump announced Saturday that he would continue to appear outside in front of supporters.
“I intend to continue holding outdoor rallies, and the Secret Service has agreed to significantly increase their activities,” he wrote. “They are fully capable of doing so.”
During his speech on Saturday, Trump also praised the Secret Service agents who protected him during the rally and responded after shots rang out.
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Former Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump raises his fist as he is escorted off the stage during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“Everybody, none of them were slow. The woman on my right was protecting me,” he said. “She’s a beautiful woman and she did everything she could to protect me. And she got crushed. And she got criticized in the fake news for not being tall enough.”
It is absurd that the Secret Service is advising Donald Trump not to hold outdoor rallies, an admission that the agency suddenly can no longer handle outdoor venues.
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump is guarded by Secret Service agents during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Michael Balboni, a former New York state representative and Department of Homeland Security adviser who worked on the Pope’s visit to Ground Zero, said the federal government has the authority and resources to completely shut down both campaigns until after the 2024 election season, but any significant reforms should come after that, he said.
“It’s absurd for the Secret Service to advise Donald Trump not to hold an outdoor rally,” Balboni told Fox News Digital. “This is an admission that the Secret Service suddenly can’t handle outdoor venues. What have they been doing for the last 20 years? They have. So why now? This is an admission that with all the resources and assets the Secret Service has, they cannot protect in an open environment.”
He said asking candidates to limit campaign activities to indoor venues may be unprecedented.
Then-presidential candidate Barack Obama speaks during a campaign rally at Buchanan Park in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on September 4, 2008. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
“Barack Obama had 80,000 people at his rallies. Can you say that to him?” he said. “When Barack Obama became president, as the first black president, there was a lot of concern internally about assassination threats. So they doubled it down. And that’s how it played out here?”
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Trump is also a polarizing figure, he said.
A female Secret Service agent guards President Trump following the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“He’s a very big target,” he added. “How did that affect their preparations?”
An FBI investigation is underway into the motives of the attempted assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, as well as additional investigations by Congress and other agencies into security failings that allowed Crooks to carry a rifle onto a rooftop within 150 yards of President Trump.
“No one may ever obstruct or impede the freedom of speech or assembly.”
Bill Gage, a former Secret Service agent and consultant at Safe Haven Security Group, said the agency will now face increased scrutiny, even extending to the new director’s office.
“Politically, he needs to get out there again,” he said. “Not having any more outdoor rallies would make him look weak. But from an expert perspective, this is problematic for the U.S. Secret Service. Every outdoor event will be heavily monitored all the way up to the director. Every event will be fully staffed and any threats or potential threats will be overly mitigated. This will put further strain on the agency during an already very active election season.”
Donald Trump reacts as multiple gunshots ring out during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (Reuters/Brendan McDiarmid)
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On Friday, President Trump said he would return to Butler to hold a rally to memorialize the man killed by Crooks with a stray bullet.
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Fox News’ Ashley Papa contributed to this report.
