Following the assassination attempt on former President Trump, Americans are losing confidence in the Secret Service’s ability to protect political candidates.
Trump was nearly killed by would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.
A bullet from Crooks, 20, grazed the Republican presidential candidate’s ear but was quickly removed by the Secret Service.
The aftermath of the near miss led to intense criticism of the department and the resignation of its director, Kimberly Cheatle.
of Associated Press/NORC The research center poll released Friday found that 28% of Americans said they were “not very” or “not at all” confident about whether the Secret Service is still capable of carrying out its duties, while 40% said they were “somewhat” confident.
Additionally, 29% of Americans are not confident that the Department of Homeland Security will conduct a “full and fair investigation” into the assassination attempt, while only 36% are very confident.
The numbers tend to edge along partisan lines, with Democrats generally expressing more trust in the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security, while Republicans express more skepticism toward both agencies.
Most Democratic and Republican lawmakers agreed on the root causes of the mass shootings, citing America’s political divisions.
The Trump family continues to support the Secret Service, and when asked about the issue, Lara Trump, former President Trump’s daughter-in-law and co-chair of the Republican National Committee, told the paper that she continues to have full confidence in the agency.
“I think the men and women of the United States Secret Service are some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, Eric. [Trump] “I had Secret Service protection for four years, and the people around me were wonderful. They were completely, 100 percent professional in what they did,” Lara Trump said in a brief interview at the Republican National Convention last month.
The AP/NORC poll was conducted July 25-29 among 1,143 adults and has a margin of error of +/- 4.1 percentage points.
