Congressional leaders on Monday announced the members of a newly created bipartisan task force investigating the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump earlier this month.
The 13-member committee will be chaired by Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pennsylvania) and led by Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colorado), according to a statement from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York).
“We have every confidence in this bipartisan, stalwart and extremely capable group of lawmakers to find the facts, ensure accountability, and ensure this kind of failure never happens again,” Johnson and Jeffries said in a joint statement.
Lawmakers on a bipartisan task force will work to determine how the suspect, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, escaped security and fired at least one bullet within an inch of the 45th president’s skull.
Police shot and killed Crooks seconds after he opened fire on the former president, but not before Crooks’ bullets killed firefighter Corey Comperatore, 50, and seriously wounded two others, David Duch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74.
The committee’s Republican members are Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, Rep. David Joyce of Ohio, Rep. Laurel Lee of Florida, Rep. Michael Walz of Florida, Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana and Rep. Pat Fallon of Texas.
The Democrats are Rep. Lou Correa of California, Rep. Madeleine Dean of Pennsylvania, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland and Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida.
Messrs. Jeffries and Johnson announced plans last week to form a bipartisan task force that would exercise Congress’ normal investigative powers, including the power to issue subpoenas.
The commission’s purpose is to uncover security failings at the July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and to ensure accountability and prevent similar failures in the future.
The committee’s chairman, Kelly, is a native of Butler, where the shooting that nearly killed President Trump took place, and represents the Keystone State’s 16th Congressional District, which includes Butler.
Lawmakers have drafted a resolution calling for the creation of a bipartisan task force.
Here is the latest on the assassination attempt against Donald Trump:
Senator Crow is a former Army Ranger who served his country in both Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his service in Afghanistan.
Also notable are Greene, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, and Walz, who quickly went public with allegations that the Secret Service denied Trump extra security.
Initially, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi Reject the claim A request by Trump’s team for extra security was rejected as “completely false,” but last week security agencies came clean.
“In cases where specialized Secret Service units or resources were not available, the agency made changes to ensure the safety of those it protects,” Guglielmi said in a statement.
“This may include leveraging state and local partners to provide specialized capabilities and identifying alternatives to reduce protected individuals’ exposure to the public.”
Timeline of the attempted assassination of President Trump
In the wake of the backlash over the security mishap, former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle offered to resign following growing bipartisan pressure.
The task force follows the last major congressional committee of its kind to address the rapid rise of artificial intelligence, announced in February.
There are multiple ongoing investigations into the incident, which occurred on July 13. The FBI is investigating a motive for the shooting.
President Biden has also called for an independent investigation into the shooting, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General has confirmed it is looking into the situation. Several other congressional committees have also written letters requesting information and are taking other investigative steps.
The House of Representatives is currently on its August recess and is due to reconvene in September.
