The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general report concluded that the U.S. Secret Service did not conduct dog sweeps of the brush at the Democratic National Committee building on January 6, 2021, did not have an explosives disposal team on site, and did not use two “primary explosive detection capabilities for security sweeps.”
The long-awaited 82-page report by Joseph Caffari is a scathing new indictment of the agency, released on the heels of the Secret Service’s historic security blunders that led to the July 13 near-assassination of former President Donald J. Trump.
Thomas Matthew Crooks shot President Trump in the ear, killed former Fire Chief Corey Comperatore, and severely injured James Copenhaver and David Duch. The rooftop that Crooks used as a sniper launch pad was not guarded by police until President Trump’s speech began just after 6pm on July 13.
“Inspector General Khufari’s report is reprehensible and reveals a culture of failure at the Secret Service,” said Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who conducted an extensive investigation into the Jan. 6 pipe bomb attack.
“The Secret Service’s failure to detect the pipe bomb on January 6th is part of the same pattern of incompetence that nearly led to the assassination of President Trump,” Massie said. “The Secret Service needs to seriously reform before one of its protected individuals pays the ultimate price for its ongoing negligence.”
On January 6, two pipe bombs were found in Washington, one in an alley between the Capitol Hill Club and the Republican National Committee building, and the other in bushes on the southwest side of the Democratic National Committee headquarters. Despite a 43-month federal investigation and a $500,000 bounty, no arrests have been made.
Khuffari submitted his report to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in April after it was reviewed by then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who resigned from her position on July 23. Khuffari’s investigation began in February 2021.
Congressional sources told The Blaze News that both Mayorkas and Cheatle tried to cover up the entire report. The Blaze Media reached out to the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security for comment about the report and the allegations of attempts to cover it up, but did not receive a response by press time.
Among the biggest mistakes listed in the redacted report was the failure of the Secret Service to
“The location of the pipe bomb was close to the garage driveway ramp and should have been cleared,” the report said.
Acting Director of the Secret Service Ronald L. Rowe Jr. did not mention the OIG report during an Aug. 2 press conference and did not answer any questions from reporters.
Kamala Harris Says “Explosive Device” Found at Democratic National Convention. Why? | The Truth About January 6thYoutube
According to reports submitted to the House and Senate oversight committees on August 1, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ motorcade came within feet of a pipe bomb planted in bushes next to the Democratic National Convention building.
Harris arrived at 11:25 a.m. on Jan. 6 and remained in the building for an hour and 50 minutes, about 10 minutes after U.S. Capitol Police discovered the bomb.
According to the OIG report, Harris’ trip to the Democratic National Convention was scheduled two days earlier, on Jan. 4, 2021. The subject of Harris’ meeting was not disclosed, and no other attendees were mentioned.
“Officers responsible for the sweep of the exterior area stated that the exterior sweep included the garage entrance ramp and other areas near the garage entrance including the storm drain, but did not include the bushes where the pipe bomb was located.”
The report said the Secret Service did not use two “critical” explosive detection capabilities on January 6. The agency did not have a dedicated on-site coordinator to manage its technological assets and bomb preparedness, and did not have an explosives disposal team at the DNC.
The agency told the inspector general it believed it should provide 72 hours’ notice when requesting EOD teams for security sweeps, though Khuffali wrote he found no evidence to support such a requirement.
Revelation looms large
The shocking failure of two Secret Service teams with bomb-sniffing dogs to find the bomb at the DNC and prevent Harris from entering a building that was clearly at risk of a massive explosion is even more troubling in light of the July 13 assassination attempt on President Trump at an amusement park in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Multiple investigations have been launched to determine how the 20-year-old shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was able to climb unstoppably to the roof of American Glass Research Building 6 and fire eight shots from an AR-15 before being shot and killed by a police counter-sniper.
January 6, 2021 DNC pipe bomb discoveredYoutube
The OIG report said the Secret Service violated regulations by failing to designate the evacuation of the building Harris was in on Jan. 6 as an “extraordinary protection event.” An extraordinary protection event is defined as “any occurrence, episode, or incident that disrupts the normal protective activities of the Secret Service.”
Cheatle told the inspector general that Harris’ evacuation from the Democratic National Convention was “without question” an extraordinary protective action and should have been designated as such.
Massie revealed in January that the bomb at the Democratic National Convention was discovered by plainclothes Capitol Police officers at 1:05 p.m. on January 6, confirming what The Blaze News first reported on January 17.
In July 2023, Massie released Capitol Police security video showing the Secret Service’s indifferent reaction after the discovery of the pipe bomb, a baffling attitude given that the FBI considers pipe bombs to be weapons of mass destruction.
Politico first reported in January 2022 that Harris was at the Democratic National Convention when the bomb was discovered. In the months since, Harris has never been asked by the media for her reaction to the apparent assassination attempt, nor has she publicly addressed the incident.
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