In the wake of the recent assassination attempt on former President Trump, some House Republicans are questioning whether the United States Secret Service (USSS) should be under the control of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
“I think it's something that should be considered: do they need to be taken out of the Department of Homeland Security, should they be an independent agency, or should they be under the jurisdiction of another agency? I think their mission is quite different than a lot of the agencies that are under the Department of Homeland Security,” Rep. Michael Guest (R-Miss.), vice chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, told Fox News Digital.
The Secret Service was founded in 1865 as the Treasury Department's Bureau of Counterfeiting and in 1913 was authorized by Congress to provide full-time protection for the President. According to the agency's websiteIn 2003, it was transferred from the Department of the Treasury to the newly established Department of Homeland Security.
The agency has faced intense scrutiny following two assassination attempts on President Trump. In July, a 20-year-old man opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, killing one attendee and wounding Trump. Last weekend, police arrested a 58-year-old man who was believed to have been waiting for Trump with an AK-47 at a golf course in West Palm Beach.
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The Secret Service has come under intense scrutiny from Congress following two assassination attempts on former President Trump. (Getty Images)
While no legislative proposals have yet been put forward on this specific issue, several Republican lawmakers told Fox News Digital that the incident has prompted a broader discussion among some lawmakers about the Department of Homeland Security in general.
“What this case shows is the extent to which, 20 years later, we should be questioning the wisdom of creating the Department of Homeland Security in the first place,” said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas. “Frankly, the Department of Homeland Security as a whole has failed on a number of levels.”
“This is not proof to anybody on the ground. … But to the people at the top of the bureaucracy, this is hurting us. … This will be a step forward for the Secret Service.”
Rep. Byron Donald (R-Fla.) said that the Department of Homeland Security being an “umbrella agency” is “not working.”
“I honestly feel like the Secret Service doesn't get the light or the attention it needs. [Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas]”That's because his agency is huge. And I don't see any problem in splitting it up,” Donald said. “And it's not just the Secret Service. It's border security. It's immigration. It's everything else.”
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Rep. Chip Roy said the case should prompt a discussion about the role of the Department of Homeland Security overall. (Getty Images)
Donald added that it would probably be difficult to achieve this year, but suggested a more serious effort could be made if Republicans retain control of the House of Representatives in November.
Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas recalled that when he worked in the White House medical department, there was some resentment among staff about being transferred to the Department of Homeland Security.
“When this first happened, and I know for a fact because I dealt with them every day in the White House for 14 years, they didn't like it very much. … They were big fish in a small pond when they were in the Treasury Department, and then when they got caught up in this huge bureaucracy that is the Department of Homeland Security … they felt like their importance and their competence was downgraded,” Jackson said.
Rep. Greg Stube (R-Fla.) similarly told Fox News Digital that he was “not opposed” to considering splitting up the Department of Homeland Security.
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A panoramic view of the fenced-in area near the sixth hole at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, where Ryan Rouse reportedly waited for former President Trump on Sunday. (Peter Burke/Fox News Digital/Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office)
And Rep. Mark Alford (R-Missouri) recently wrote to X, “We don't need more funding for the United States Secret Service. We need new leadership.”
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“I believe the USSS should be returned to the Department of the Treasury from the Department of Homeland Security, which has become a political tool under Alejandro Mayorkas, the biggest liar since Pinocchio,” Alford said.
But several other House Republicans who spoke with Fox News Digital were skeptical of the idea or said they hadn't had such a discussion.
“People are saying, I don't know if it's just a thought, but things are just things that they're thinking about,” said Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pennsylvania), chairman of the House Task Force on Trump Shootings. “Right now, we have a system in place.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
