Milwaukee — Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee has stepped up her demands that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle answer questions about the assassination attempt on former President Trump..
“Chief Cheatle can run, but she can’t hide. If she has time to sweet talk people in a luxury suite at the Republican National Convention, surely she has time to explain why Secret Service failures led to the near assassination of President Trump,” Blackburn told Fox News Digital on Thursday. “The last thing she should be doing is pandering when civilians are working around the clock in Milwaukee.”
On Wednesday, on the third night of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Sen. Blackburn and Republican Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) confronted Sen. Cheatle about security failings in thwarting an assassination attempt on Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.
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The photo shows Senators Marsha Blackburn and John Barrasso confronting Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle. (@VoteMarsha/X)
“You’re disruptive,” Barrasso can be heard yelling at Cheatle as he walks through the convention center.
“This was an assassination attempt. They owe the American people an explanation, they owe President Trump an explanation,” Blackburn said.
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Cheatle was in a plush booth at the Republican National Convention, watching speakers take to the stage before Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio gave his first speech since being announced as Trump’s running mate.
Another video shows lawmakers yelling at the director of the Secret Service, with Cheatle responding, “I don’t think this is the appropriate place to discuss this.”
Cheatle has refused to resign amid calls for an explanation of how a gunman opened fire on President Trump and other rally attendees in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) speaks on the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on July 15, 2024. (Reuters/Mike Seeger)
“During any significant incident, continuity of operations is paramount, and Director of the U.S. Secret Service Kimberly Cheatle has no intention of resigning,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement. “She has deep respect for members of Congress and is committed to leading the Secret Service transparently through our internal investigations and strengthening the agency through lessons learned from these important internal and external investigations.”
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Gunshots rang out at the start of Trump’s campaign rally on Saturday. Trump suddenly clutched his right ear, crouched and collapsed to the stage floor. Secret Service agents quickly surrounded Trump and escorted him off the stage, his right ear covered in blood.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after suffering a bullet wound during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Before being removed, Trump pumped his fist in the air and repeatedly yelled “Fight!” to the crowd to show he was OK.
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The shooter, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Pennsylvania, wounded Trump, injured two other rally attendees and killed the 50-year-old father, Corey Comperatore.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was photographed being hurried off a stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, with blood streaming from his face and surrounded by Secret Service agents. (Rebecca Droke/AFP via Getty Images)
Calls and questions about the attack have been increasing, with conservative lawmakers stepping up calls for Cheatle to resign over security failures.
“How did this happen? We have received no satisfaction so close to the death of a former president. It is time for the head of the Secret Service to step down,” Barrasso said.
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Security at the Republican National Convention was stepped up after the shooting, with police officers from across the country being dispatched to the massive convention in Milwaukee.
