On Monday, October 21, a bipartisan House special working group in the United States issued a statement declaring the failed assassination attempt on former President Trump in a Pennsylvania rally in July as “preventable and should not have happened.”
The group released the latest report on the preliminary review, citing the “alarming security failures” as the main cause of the incident.
Led by Representatives Mike Kelly (Republican, Pennsylvania) and Jason Crow (Democrat, Colorado), the special working group reiterated many findings from previous independent investigations by the Department of Homeland Security, Senate investigative groups, and internal Secret Service reviews in the extensive 53-page report.
During a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, Trump was attacked, shot in the ear, one attendee was fatally shot, and two others were injured, followed by the Secret Service sniper fatally shooting the gunman.
The special working group’s investigation results were based on 23 interviews with local law enforcement officials and reviewing thousands of pages of documents. Kelly also issued three subpoenas to obtain sensitive documents from local agencies in Pennsylvania.
Members of both houses of Congress have repeatedly questioned why the Secret Service, responsible for protecting the nation’s top leaders, did not coordinate well with local authorities during campaign rallies, especially regarding obvious security threats in buildings.
The report pointed out that “federal, state, and local law enforcement officials could have intercepted Thomas Matthew Crooks at several key moments.” However, the building had almost no security measures in place, allowing the gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks to climb onto the roof and open fire.
The report emphasized that the “communication channels between the Secret Service and Pennsylvania and local police were not smooth, and the chain of command was not clear,” placing most of the responsibility on the Secret Service’s security failures.
The report stated, “Simply put, the evidence obtained by the special working group to date shows that the tragedy on July 13 was preventable.”
Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe Jr. stated that the agency has enhanced security protections for major party presidential candidates, such as installing bulletproof glass around candidates at outdoor events and expanding protection zones.
Like previous reports, the latest report from the special working group did not identify specific individuals who may be held responsible for this incident.
According to previous reports by the Associated Press, at least 5 Secret Service agents have been reassigned. Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned amidst bipartisan criticism following the shooting incident and took full responsibility for the error.
To further investigate, the special working group plans to conduct 20 more interviews with federal officials. The group has also expanded its scope of review to cover the failed assassination attempt on September 15, when a suspect tried to shoot Trump at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Comprising 7 Republicans and 6 Democrats, the special working group intends to release a final report by mid-December, including recommendations to prevent future assassination attempts on political candidates.