A former FBI special agent has slammed the director of the Secret Service following the assassination attempt on former President Trump, warning that his response was “unacceptable.”
Nicole Parker, a Fox News contributor who served as an FBI special agent, slammed Director Kimberly Cheatle for her handling of the attack on President Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.
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“Where was she or where was the representative of the U.S. Secret Service? The first press conference is their site. There should have been a representative there,” Parker told Maria Bartiromo on Monday.
Mr Parker said Mr Cheatle waited too long to speak after the attack.
“Even if she doesn’t come forward, there will be potential assassination attempts. If there was ever a time for her to come forward, it’s now. And it’s just silence. This is unacceptable.”
Cheatle A statement was issued In response to Saturday’s tragedy, he wrote on Monday, “First, I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Corey Comperatore, who was killed in Saturday’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, and to those injured in this senseless act of violence.”
“During the incident, Secret Service agents on the scene acted swiftly, with counter-sniper teams neutralizing the shooter and agents implementing protective measures to ensure the safety of former President Donald Trump.”
The Secret Service came under heavy criticism for not attending a Saturday night press conference following the shooting that was attended by local and FBI officials just hours after Trump was shot.
It wasn’t until Sunday that the Secret Service held a press conference at Centennial Hall in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, ahead of the Republican National Convention.
“Just to be sure, have you made any changes to your security plans in light of what happened yesterday, or not?” a reporter asked during the briefing.
“There are no changes to the current operational security plan for this event,” said Audrey Gibson Cicchino, the Secret Service’s 2024 Republican National Convention security coordinator. “Operational security plans have been established for all areas of responsibility involved in all aspects of security related to this event.”
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Cheatle also said in a statement Monday that he was “confident” in the Republican National Committee’s security plans, which he said had been “enhanced” in the wake of the weekend attack.
“The incident in Pennsylvania naturally raises questions about possible security updates and changes to the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The U.S. Secret Service works in coordination with federal, state and local law enforcement and public safety partners to dynamically design our National Special Security Event (NSSE) Operational Security Plan to respond to the dynamic security environment and the latest information from our partners,” she wrote.
“I am confident in the security plan put in place by our Republican National Convention coordinators and partners at the Secret Service, and we have reviewed and enhanced this plan in light of Saturday’s shooting. Any security plan for a national special security event is designed to be flexible. As the convention proceeds, the Secret Service, in accordance with the President’s direction, will continue to adjust operations as necessary to ensure the highest level of safety and security for convention participants, volunteers and the City of Milwaukee. In addition to the additional security enhancements we provided to former President Trump’s security in June, we have also made changes to his security since Saturday to ensure his continued protection throughout the convention and the remainder of the election.”
Meanwhile, there have been growing calls for Mr Cheatle to resign over the attack, which left one protester dead and two seriously injured.
She will be appointed head of the Secret Service by President Biden in 2022, becoming just the second woman in history to lead the agency.
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“That achievement in a male-dominated industry was memorable to me,” Cheatle told Security Magazine in 2022. Article on “Women in Security.” “I had pictures on my desk of the first five women to be sworn in. I would look at them and remember that these women gave me a chance, and that I too can help others grow and take on leadership roles.”
According to the USSS website, Cheatle is responsible for carrying out the agency’s overall mission of “leading a diverse workforce to protect and investigatively serve.” Critics have accused Cheatle of prioritizing a “woke” ideology rooted in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) rather than focusing solely on recruiting the best talent for the agency.
“She’s already got a plan for this. It’s well known that she wants 30 percent of Secret Service employees to be women by 2030,” she continued. “Maria, why would that be a problem? We should be focused on protection. That’s what the Secret Service does. Anything else is a distraction. Diversity, equity, inclusion, all of these are distractions from the true mission. And unfortunately, I saw the exact same thing at the FBI. I began to wonder: Am I working for the social justice warrior club or am I working for the FBI?”
Either way, Parker said the attacks on Trump were “unacceptable.”
“It’s unbelievable how this happened and it’s horrifying for America,” Parker said. “If a 20-year-old can disrupt our political process and cause this mayhem, then look at our adversaries. Can you imagine? They’re probably just sitting there laughing. This is inexcusable. This is unacceptable. And then this happened. This is a failure.”
Fox News’ Stephanie Price contributed to this report.
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