Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigns in wake of Trump assassination attempt

Video obtained exclusively by Fox News shows the assassination attempt on former President Trump from the perspective of an eyewitness.

In the minute and twenty-five-second video, the sound of gunshots and screaming can be heard, and partnered with images of people running for their lives, the clip provides a powerful perspective.

Eight gunshots can be heard in the video, followed by two counter sniper shots.

Fox was told by a source that one shot came from a local sniper, while the other came from a Secret Service sniper, which was ultimately the kill shot.

Rally attendee Jon Malis provided the video to Fox.

He said he and his family watched the rally from next to the AGR building which Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to scale to access the roof and get a clear line of sight of Trump before opening fire.

Malis also told Fox all of the witnesses near the AGR building did not have to go through metal detectors because they were outside the rally site, though they all had a clear and close view of Trump.

Fox News’ Bryan Llenas contributed to this report.

Bodycam footage taken from law enforcement shows the body of the shooter who opened fire on former President Trump from a rooftop as authorities worked through the confusion following the chaotic shooting.

Sen. Chuck Grassely, R-Iowa, posted the three-minute video on social media Tuesday. The footage shows authorities on the roof of a building in Butler, Penn., where Thomas Matthew Crooks was shot dead by snipers after shooting Trump.

The footage was obtained from the Beaver County Emergency Services Unit, Grassley posted on X.

"Beaver County snipers seen him, sent the pictures out. This is him," someone off-camera is heard saying as Crooks' body is seen on the roof next to a trail of blood and several feet away from what appears to be a rifle.

A man who appears to be a Secret Service agent is seen talking to local authorities and asking about a bike nearby on the ground.

Read more about what the video revealed.

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Members of the US House of Representatives tour the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania on Monday, July 22, 2024. A bipartisan group of lawmakers are visiting the site of former President Donald Trump’s attempted assassination that left one attendee dead and two injured at a campaign rally last week.

Pa. police commissioner told lawmakers Tuesday that two law enforcement officers stationed in buildings where a gunman opened fire at former President Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, left to go search for the suspicious man before the shooting occurred.

The testimony raised questions about whether a key post at the Butler fairgrounds was left unattended when would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed onto a roof that gave him a clear line of sight of the president.

Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher Paris told the House Homeland Security Committee that two Butler County Emergency Services Unit officers were manning a second-floor window in a complex of buildings that form AGR International Inc. The officers spotted Crooks acting suspiciously on the ground and left their post to go find him along with other law enforcement officers, Parris said.

Parris was not sure whether the officers would have been able to see Crooks climbing onto the roof of the adjacent building if they remained at the window.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Rep. Nancy Mace questions U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who accused Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle of being “full of s- - -” at a House Committee on Oversight hearing on Monday into the attempted assassination of former President Trump, said she is withdrawing a motion to impeach the agency’s former director.

The fiery remark from the South Carolina lawmaker came after Cheatle was directed by Mace to answer a series of yes or no questions on the Secret Service’s response to the attempted assassination of former President Trump in Pennsylvania, in which Cheatle said "yes" to it being a "colossal failure," and a tragedy that could have been prevented.

Following the hearing, lawmakers filed articles to impeach Cheatle, but on Tuesday morning, she resigned from her position.

“Strolling straight to the Speaker's office,” Mace said in a post on X. “Now that Director Cheatle resigned after getting her rear handed to her yesterday and our articles to impeach her, we're withdrawing our motion to impeach. Accountability is non-negotiable. This is what we call a mic drop.”

Another lawmaker who weighed in on Cheatle’s resignation was Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who said in a post on X that the director’s resignation is not the end of this failure.

“She will not get to slither away and enjoy retirement,” Greene wrote. “Cheatle and [Homeland Security Director Alejandro Mayorkas] will face accountability for actions, including possible criminal investigations.

I won’t let this go unanswered!”

"The assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13th is the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades."

These are not my words: This is from former Secret Service Director Kimberley Cheatle’s opening testimony at Monday's hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.

One would think that Cheatle had done her research to know every detail of the events of that day; however, her testimony suggested the total opposite. Former Director Cheatle provided nonsensical, incoherent, and unsubstantive answers to basic questions from my colleagues and me on both sides of the aisle.

I’m glad to see former Director Cheatle tender her resignation on Tuesday. In truth, I would have liked to have seen her fired instead. Accountability starts from the top, and we must take a hard look at the failures that led to President Trump’s near-assassination at the hands of a 20-year-old, untrained loner.

Former Director Cheatle’s bewildering comments immediately following the Butler, Pa., assassination attempt, combined with her inept testimony before Congress, have proved troubling for the nation.

Read the rest of this opinion piece by U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas. 

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said the Senate Judiciary Committee is still working to conduct a joint hearing with the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs on the attempted assassination of former President Trump.

“We have been working through the weekend with the HSGAC committee on a bipartisan basis to do a joint hearing,” Durbin told reporters on Tuesday. “We have split jurisdiction with Homeland Security and Secret Service and so forth. And we've agreed to do it. We're working on the witness list.”

He noted that the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle “leaves us open as to who represents the agency.”

There have been bipartisan calls to investigate how the shooter was able to get in position to shoot Trump during a Pennsylvania campaign rally.

“So this has been bipartisan all the way," Durbin said. "It isn't like to try and hold off any kind of investigation. I think it was pretty smart, incidentally, to wait until the House was finished and see what they came up with.”

Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle (REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt)

With a huge push by House Democrats and Republicans to get to the bottom of how a shooter was able to access a roof with a clear line of sight at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania and nearly kill former President Trump, there is speculation not much will happen as lawmakers are expected to go on summer break at the end of the week for about 12 weeks.

Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie spoke to Neil Cavuto on “Your World” about the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and bipartisan efforts being made in the House to get answers to the attempted assassination of Trump.

“House Democrats and Republicans are telling me, you know, it's a good thing that she's gone. They wanted that,” Hasnie said. “But they say that it doesn't really change anything and it's not enough, which is why the House speaker and the Democratic leader here in the House are jointly basically launching a new task force to look into this themselves.

“It's going to be made up of Republicans and Democrats, and there's a lot of interest from lawmakers to get on this task force and try to figure out what went wrong here,” she continued. “Part of that oversight is already happening today. The Pennsylvania State Police commissioner came to the Hill to testify in front of the House Homeland Security Committee, and he revealed that the two officers with the Butler County Emergency Services Unit, they were the ones inside that building. That's the building that the shooter was sitting atop, and to the best of his knowledge, they had a clear view…of where the gunman would have climbed on top of that building to the roof, but they were told, apparently to move, to go search for him. And now lawmakers are questioning who the heck told them to do that.”

Hasnie said Cheatle was supposed to be at a hearing from the House Homeland Security Committee but did not make it because of her resignation.

FBI Director Christopher Wray was also expected to be at the hearing, but instead will be at a hearing on Wednesday.

“I want to make a point, though. You know, these lawmakers want to get to the bottom of what happened, but there’s talk on the Hill that they may be going on summer break at the end of the week for many, many weeks, about 12 weeks,” Hasnie said. “So, I don’t know what they’re going to get resolved by Friday.” 

Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., told Fox News on Tuesday that he and a team of lawmakers who visited the site in Butler, Pennsylvania on Monday where former President Trump was nearly assassinated, saw “lots of errors” in the planning and conduct between law enforcement agencies.

Green was a guest on Fox News’ “America Reports” on Tuesday when he was asked what needs to happen now that former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle gave lawmakers what they wanted on Tuesday by resigning.

“Well, obviously there are a lot of mistakes that were made,” Green said. “I just came out of our hearing right now talking to the Pennsylvania State Police and the discoveries of errors. Yesterday when we visited the site…we looked, really, at the planning phase and we saw lots of errors there, and then we saw errors today in the actual conduct of this thing, communications handoff.”

The Tennessee lawmaker said one of the problems is that law enforcement officials are not on the same communication networks as the military. When he worked in special operations, Green explained, everyone spoke on satellite radios, but that is not how it is with law enforcement across the country.

He specifically said that was not the case in Butler.

“They sent a picture 25 minutes before the president was shot, meaning about 10 to 12 minutes before he walked on stage, saying that a guy had used a rangefinder and was this suspicious person,” Green said. “Now, whomever at the Secret Service didn’t say, ‘Hey, Mr. President. Let’s hold up just a little bit until we find this guy,’ that guy needs to be fired. Whoever was in charge in that command center and didn’t make that decision, that person needs to go as well.”

Matthew Crooks, left, leaves a store on Monday, July 22, 2024. He was seen in public for the first time since his son, Thomas Crooks, attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania rally on July 13. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

EXCLUSIVE: Trump shooter's father returns to public life, says ‘we just want to try to take care of ourselves’

Thomas Matthew Crooks' father was spotted in public on Monday for the first time since the 20-year-old gunman opened fire at former President Donald Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania , according to a local business employee and a neighbor who identified a picture of him.

Snipers killed Crooks after the Bethel Park resident nicked Trump's ear, killed bystander Corey Comperatore and injured two others at the July 13 rally, David Dutch and James Copenhaver.

Investigators have spent the last week visiting Crooks' family home in their suburban Pittsburgh neighborhood.

The man locals identified as the father and a masked woman he was with declined to answer questions when approached by Fox News Digital.

"We're going to release a statement when our legal counsel advises us to do so – until then, we have no comment," he told Fox News Digital before beginning to load items into the vehicle. "We just want to try to take care of ourselves right now. Please, just give us our space."

Crooks' family members have cooperated with the FBI as the agency tries to pin down a motive for the near assassination.

Read more about the Trump shooter and his family.

Fox News’ Christina Coulter contributed to this report.

Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher Paris

Pennsylvania State Police shut down concerns by now-resigned Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle that the "sloped roof" the shooter used to nearly assassinate former President Trump was too unsafe for law enforcement officers.

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher Paris made the statement during his testimony before the House Homeland Security Committee on Tuesday. Paris oversaw the state and local law enforcement in their partnership with the Secret Service during Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., began his questions by recounting his own experience having been to the scene of the shooting earlier this week.

"The Secret Service director, prior to her resignation, said that she did not put anybody on the roof because it had a sloped roof that would have created a safety concern," Guest began. "I was in Butler, Pennsylvania, yesterday with many members of this committee. My fellow member, Carlos Jimenez, who is 70 years old…. There's video of him easily traversing the roof, walking across the roof. Even though he is some 50 years older than the shooter."

"And so, my question is, do you agree with the assessment of the former Secret Service director that the roof was so sloped, that it created safety concerns?" he asked.

"I cannot agree with that," Paris responded.

Read more about Paris’ testimony on Tuesday.

Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher Paris

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher Paris told lawmakers Tuesday that the man who opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13 and nearly assassinated former President Trump fired eight shots.

Rep. Eric Swalwel, R-Calif., asked Paris during a hearing held by the House Committee on Homeland Security on Tuesday, how many rounds would-be Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks fired before he was killed.

“I believe that the number is eight,” Paris said. “Eight casings have been recovered.”

Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who submitted her resignation on Tuesday, refused to answer the same question from lawmakers during a House Committee on Oversight hearing on Monday.

Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., filmed a video from the rooftop where Thomas Crooks shot former President Trump during a July 13 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz. )

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher Paris told lawmakers Tuesday he did not have any idea why security teams could not find a suspicious person before he opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, nearly killing former President Trump.

Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., was given the chance to ask Paris several questions during a hearing held by the House Committee on Homeland Security on Tuesday.

“Why weren't security teams, sir, on site able to spot a 20 year old kid with zero camouflage crawling up a white roof with an AR-15 that several rally goers were screaming and yelling and pointing out, and they noticed him and they weren't even there to conduct security,” Crane asked. “They were there to watch the president. Do you have any idea why the security teams couldn't find that guy?”

“I do not, sir,” Paris said.

“Are you aware, sir, that many Americans believe this was very likely not a lone shooter, but a coordinated assassination attempt? Have you been getting those messages from people like I have,” Crane asked.

“I have not, sir,” Paris responded.

Crane said a lot of lawmakers in the room have received such messages, raising suspicion about how a 20-year-old kid was able to get within 150 yards of Trump with an AR-15, flew drone reconnaissance at the site, and was spotted with a range finder before dropping off the radar.

“I was a sniper in the SEALS team, Colonel,” Crane said. “As soon as I got out of the SUV and I saw that water tower, I was like, that's exactly where I'd be. Put me right there.”

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Col. Christopher Paris told the House lawmakers on Tuesday that two municipal police officers searching for Trump shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks in the leadup to the assassination attempt spotted him with a weapon just minutes before the first shots were fired. 

Paris, speaking to the House Homeland Security Committee, said the officers were “actively looking” for Crooks and “It became apparent at some point that he was up on the roof” that he ultimately fired at Trump from. 

“Those two municipal officers who responded then, to their credit, actively once they realized that he was on the roof, one boosted the other one up,” Paris said. “By the time that officer was boosted up on top of the roof, Crooks was on it almost in that final position that you saw, he had the AR out, and he pointed it at the municipal officer who was suspended from the roof, [who] was not in a position -- feet dangling at that point -- to draw a weapon or continue hoisting himself back up on the roof. He drops back down from the roof.” 

“By the time that that, municipal officer was hoisted up onto the roof and saw him, he had the weapon out,” Paris added, saying the encounter happened “at most two and a half to three minutes before that first shot rung.” 

Former President Trump says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on Friday.

"During my first term, we had Peace and Stability in the Region, even signing the historic Abraham Accords - And we will have it again. Just as I have said in discussions with President Zelenskyy and other World Leaders in recent weeks, my PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH Agenda will demonstrate to the World that these horrible, deadly Wars, and violent Conflicts must end," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

"Millions are dying, and Kamala Harris is in no way capable of stopping it," he added.

Ronald L. Rowe, Jr. has been appointed the acting Secret Service director on Tuesday following the resignation of Kimberly Cheatle. 

“Deputy Director Rowe has been Deputy Director of Secret Service since April 2023. A 24-year veteran of the Secret Service, he previously served as the agency’s Assistant Director for the Office of Intergovernmental and Legislative Affairs, Deputy Assistant Director for the Office of Protective Operations, and in other leadership positions," Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement announcing the appointment. 

“I appreciate his willingness to lead the Secret Service at this incredibly challenging moment, as the agency works to get to the bottom of exactly what happened on July 13 and cooperate with ongoing investigations and Congressional oversight,” Mayorkas added. “At the same time, the Secret Service must effectively carry on its expansive mission that includes providing 24/7 protection for national leaders and visiting dignitaries and securing events of national significance in this dynamic and heightened threat environment.” 

Sarah Taylor said she saw "sharpshooters" to her left while she was watching former President Trump speak at his July 13 rally. (Sarah Taylor)

BUTLER, Pa. – An Air Force veteran who attended former President Trump's campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 said she noticed glaring security issues before Thomas Crooks carried out an assassination attempt that left one dead and two others critically wounded.

Sarah Taylor, an 18-year veteran who served in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, told Fox News Digital that she was initially excited about attending her first Trump rally, but as soon as she and her friend secured their positions some 100 yards from where the president was speaking, they could not help but notice an "eerie" building behind them.

"The fence was there. Right behind us was the building the shooter was on," she recalled. "And we talked about it a lot because it was just really eerie, and my spidey senses were up. I had been in the military for 18 years, and something was not right about that area."

She noticed some local police and state troopers walking around a field outside the American Glass Research (AGR) building that Crooks eventually fired from, but there was no law enforcement presence on the roof.

"We just kept looking back at it thinking, ‘Something’s not right,'" Taylor said. "… I'm used to looking at my surroundings. I was deployed overseas — I knew something wasn't right."

Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., said Tuesday during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on the Trump assassination attempt that “it is welcome news that the director of the Secret Service has resigned, but if we say that that is enough, then we're not doing our jobs.” 

“We need to understand what protocols, policies, resources need to be changed, if any, to make sure this does not happen again,” Magaziner said. 

“We don't know the motivation of the shooter at this time, but I remain concerned by the rising tide of political violence and domestic violent extremism in this country, which impacts all of us,” Magaziner also said. 

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a press briefing at the White House on July 15. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement addressing Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s resignation that “she is deeply respected by the men and women of the agency and by her fellow leaders in the Department of Homeland Security.” 

Cheatle quit her position Tuesday following calls from lawmakers to resign over the Secret Service’s handling of the Trump assassination attempt on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

“I am grateful to Kimberly Cheatle for her leadership as the Director of the United States Secret Service and for her lifelong devotion to our country,” Mayorkas said. 

“Director Cheatle has dedicated her career to public service. She has served in the Secret Service for more than 29 years, rising through the ranks because of her talent, hard work, selfless dedication to mission, and integrity,” he added. 

“Daily, she risked her life to protect others, serving on the frontlines and securing events for every president since President Clinton,” Mayorkas also said. “She supervised protection for Vice President Cheney, led the Secret Service’s training center, supervised the protection of Vice President Biden, oversaw the agency’s entire protective mission during the administration of President Trump, and more.” 

Former President Trump raises his fist after being shot during a July 13 campaign rally in Pennsylvania. (AP/Evan Vucci)

EXCLUSIVE: Former President Trump reacted to the news of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigning in the wake of the assassination attempt against him, telling Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that "she never gave me proper protection." 

Cheatle resigned Tuesday morning , giving way to pressure from Republican and Democrat lawmakers amid scrutiny over the massive security failure that led to the shooting at the Butler, Pennsylvania, Trump rally earlier this month.

"She never gave me proper protection, so I ended up having to take a bullet for democracy," Trump told Fox News Digital Tuesday after she resigned. 

"Many requests were made by on-site Secret Service for more people, always with a turn down or no response," Trump said. "I have the biggest crowds in history, and they should be treated accordingly."

Trump told Fox News Digital, though, that "big improvements have been made over the last week."

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., told ‘America’s Newsroom’ on Tuesday that she filed a motion to impeach Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and if “the Biden administration wasn't going to fire her, I'll take her resignation.  

“That's the next best thing,” Mace told Fox News. 

“We can still have her subpoenaed, even though she's resigned, to appear before different committees, judiciary or before the Senate and other committees who are continuing this investigation. She can still be compelled by law to show up and answer questions even though she's resigned,” Mace said. 

Mace had told Cheatle yesterday during a House Oversight Committee hearing that Cheatle was “full of s---” in her answers to lawmakers about how the Secret Service handled the Trump rally shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wy., who was one of a group of lawmakers captured on video confronting Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle at last week’s Republican National Convention said Tuesday on ‘The Faulkner Focus” that “it’s about time” she resigned. 

“It should have happened a week ago,” Barrasso told Fox News. “We have to make sure that security failures like this never happen again.” 

“There has been no accountability in this administration, from Afghanistan to what has just happened now, all across the board,” Barrasso added.  

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul, R-Texas, wrote on X that “My visit to the rally site in PA yesterday further revealed the depths of Secret Service Director Cheatle's failure.  

“Her resignation is a good -- yet overdue -- step toward accountability,” he added. 

McCaul also said he and House Republicans “won't stop working to hold her responsible & get the answers Americans deserve.” 

Former President Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social shortly after the news of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s resignation that “The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy.  

“IT WAS MY GREAT HONOR TO DO SO!” Trump added. 

Trump told "Jesse Watters Primetime" last night that Cheatle came to see him in the days following the assassination attempt. 

"It went very nicely. She was very nice, I thought. But, you know, somebody should have made sure there was nobody on that roof," he said. 

Fox News' Ashley Carnahan contributed to this report.

President Biden said Tuesday following the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle that he is "grateful" to her "for her decades of public service."

"She has selflessly dedicated and risked her life to protect our nation throughout her career in the United States Secret Service. We especially thank her for answering the call to lead the Secret Service during our Administration and we are grateful for her service to our family," Biden said. 

"As a leader, it takes honor, courage, and incredible integrity to take full responsibility for an organization tasked with one of the most challenging jobs in public service," he continued.  

"The independent review to get to the bottom of what happened on July 13 continues, and I look forward to assessing its conclusions," Biden added. "We all know what happened that day can never happen again. As we move forward, I wish Kim all the best, and I will plan to appoint a new Director soon"

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has resigned less than a day after testifying in front of the House Oversight Committee. (AP/John McDonnell)

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Tuesday that he is “happy” to see that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has resigned from her job in the wake of the Trump assassination attempt. 

Johnson had told Fox News less than a week ago on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention that he was ready to call on President Biden to fire Cheatle, who for days had been resisting mounting pressure from lawmakers to step aside. 

“I'm happy to see that she has heeded the call of both Republicans and Democrats,” Johnson said Tuesday. “Now we have to pick up the pieces. We have to rebuild the American people's faith and trust in the secret services and agency.” 

Johnson also said in resigning, Cheatle "did the right thing."

Fox News' Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle – who has just resigned from her position following the Trump assassination attempt – told fellow agents in an internal message obtained by Fox News that “all of you are worthy of trust and confidence.” 

“You deserve the nation’s support in carrying out our critical mission,” she said. “One of my favorite things about this workforce is that the men and women are fiercely committed to our mission.” 

“Thank you for all that you do, and will continue to do, for our great nation,” she concluded. 

Fox News' Peter Doocy contributed to this report.

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Col. Christopher Paris said Tuesday that prior to the shooting at the Trump rally in Butler on July 13, “our role was to support the Secret Service with personnel and assets that they requested.  

“Our operation plan completed to fulfill this responsibility consisted of 32 members, and we had two main responsibilities -- a motorcade operation for the transportation -- with the Secret Service --of former President Trump, as well as manning and staffing, security posts inside the secure area of the Butler County Farm show,” he added. “Additionally, we provided two marked cars with uniformed troopers outside of the secure perimeter to provide roving duties.” 

Secret Service agents protect former President Trump after shots were fired on July 13 at a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP/Evan Vucci)

House Democrats have introduced a bill that would strip Secret Service protection from convicted felons sentenced to prison, a move directly targeting former President Trump.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the former chair of the now disbanded Jan. 6 congressional committee, introduced legislation that would automatically nix Secret Service protection for those who have been convicted of a federal or state felony that carries a minimum one-year prison term. 

The proposed bill is provocatively called the "Denying Infinite Security and Government Resources Allocated toward Convicted and Extremely Dishonorable (DISGRACED) Former Protectees Act.

"Unfortunately, current law doesn’t anticipate how Secret Service protection would impact the felony prison sentence of a protected – even a former President," Thompson said in a statement. 

"It is regrettable that it has come to this, but this previously unthought-of scenario could become our reality."

A so-called "fact sheet" accompanying Thompson’s statement notes that Trump is facing an "unprecedented 91 felony charges in federal and state courts" which have "created a new exigency that Congress must address to ensure Secret Service protection does not interfere with the criminal judicial process and the administration of justice."

Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., said Tuesday that the House Committee on Homeland Security "expected to hear answers” from Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on what went wrong with security during the Trump assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. 

“Unfortunately and unacceptably, they have refused to appear before the committee today,” Green added. “Director Cheadle testified yesterday before another committee, but many questions remain.  

“Yesterday, she provided wholly unacceptable responses to members of the House Oversight Committee and completely failed to address the lack of confidence both sides of the aisle have in her leadership of the Secret Service. Her appearing before one committee yesterday also does not absolve her of her responsibility before this committee,” Green added. “In any case, make no mistake, we will continue to push for answers.” 

Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, opened the hearing on the security response to the Trump rally shooting by saying that "on July 13, 2024, our nation came within an inch of an unmitigated tragedy and crisis."

"This failed attempt on President Trump's life demands urgent and comprehensive congressional oversight. We must understand how it happened to ensure that changes are made so this never happens again," he said.

"Yet what we saw after those shots rang out should also encourage everyone. We saw a leader under fire, rising up to show the attacker had failed," Green continued. "We saw brave Secret Service agents who put their bodies in harm's way. We see Americans across this nation refuse to let this thwart their participation in our democratic process.

"At the same time, however, we also witnessed a massive security failure by the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security," he added.

The House Committee on Homeland Security hearing on the Secret Service's response to the Trump assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on July 13 is now underway.

Col. Christopher Paris, the commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police and Patrick Yoes, the national president of the Fraternal Order of Police have been called by lawmakers to testify.

On Monday, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle was grilled by lawmakers during a House Oversight Committee hearing.

Former President Trump and his 2024 running mate JD Vance sat down for their first joint interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters on Monday following the assassination attempt on the GOP nominee’s life at a rally in Butler, Pa., last week.

Trump told "Jesse Watters Primetime" embattled Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle came to see him in the days following the assassination attempt.

"It went very nicely. She was very nice, I thought. But, you know, somebody should have made sure there was nobody on that roof," he said. 

The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired several shots at the former president from the rooftop of a building roughly 130 yards away. 

Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, wrote on X Tuesday that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle's testimony yesterday in front of the House Oversight Committee testimony “was a disgrace and she should resign, immediately.” 

“It turns out the sloped roof that Dir. Cheatle said was ‘too dangerous’ to station officers on was so safe it would be considered ADA compliant,” he added, posting a clip of him grilling Cheatle during the hearing. 

Republican Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona visited Butler, Pennsylvania, on Monday with a bipartisan group of lawmakers and raised several questions about the attempted assassination of former President Trump.

Crane, a former Navy SEAL sniper, filmed himself on the rooftop from which Thomas Matthew Crooks shot at Trump with a rifle, wounding the Republican candidate's ear, killing firefighter Corey Comperatore and injuring two other bystanders at Trump's July 13 rally. 

"Hi, guys. I'm up here on the building where the supposed sniper took the shot. It's not that steep at all," Crane said, poking a hole in U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle's claim that a "sloped roof" precluded her agency from placing personnel on the building during the rally. 

Crane said it was easy to get onto the roof, noting that 70-year-old Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., was able to climb up as lawmakers toured the location. Calling on his experience as a former Navy SEAL sniper, the Arizona Republican immediately identified a nearby water tower as a missed opportunity for the Secret Service to place countersnipers and other security miscues in the area. 

"Had Secret Service or anybody had sniper teams up there, this guy wouldn't have made it five feet up this roof," Crane said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., announced Tuesday the creation of a bipartisan House Task Force to investigate the Trump assassination attempt. 

“The security failures that allowed an assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life are shocking. In response to bipartisan demands for answers, we are announcing a House Task Force made up of seven Republicans and six Democrats to thoroughly investigate the matter,” said the two Congressional leaders said in a joint statement. 

“The task force will be empowered with subpoena authority and will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again,” they added. 

The statement also said the task force will make recommendations for reform to relevant government agencies.  

Former Secret Service agent Charles Marino told 'Fox & Friends' on Tuesday that there were “too many non-answers" from Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle during her House Oversight Committee hearing on the agency’s response to the Trump rally shooting. 

“Absolutely there were questions she could have answered. Look, there were just flat-out too many non-answers,” Marino said. “No matter who the director was yesterday walking into the Capitol, we knew this was going to be a day of reckoning.” 

“That aside, it was how this Director Kim Cheatle decided she was going to go about answering all of these questions and I think things about timelines, who had direct oversight of the plan to sign off on this operational plan – I think that’s all in play,” Marino continued. “I think when you come in as a veteran with almost 30 years experience as a line agent, Congress is expecting you to have some experience and personal opinions to be able to share about the matter.” 

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., told 'Fox & Friends First' on Tuesday that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle “has to go” after she said during an interview last week that personnel were not positioned on top of the building where the Trump rally shooter opened fire because of a "sloped roof.” 

Gimenez, who visited the site of the Trump assassination attempt on Monday, said “There is no slant to that roof. It’s maybe a 10-degree slope. The roof on my house is way, way steeper and I get on that all the time.  

“I’m 70 years old, had no problem getting on the roof, no problem standing on the roof, no problem running around the roof so that was a total made up lie by the Secret Service director and that is why she has to go,” he told ‘Fox & Friends First.’ 

“That is just an excuse for their incompetence. And it was total incompetence,” Gimenez added. “Whoever is leading [Trump’s] detail, whoever made the planning for that detail, they need to go too because there are so many gaps.” 

A former U.S. Marshals task force member joined the chorus of bipartisan lawmakers in demanding that Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resign after her "deplorable" House Oversight Committee hearing on Monday about the attempted assassination of former President Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, this month.

"I think nine days out for her to not visit the scene as director where lives were lost is deplorable," Terry Mikels, a former U.S. Marshals Service task force officer and a personal protection specialist with Executive Security Concepts, told Fox News Digital.

Mikels skewered Cheatle after the agency's director revealed at Monday's hearing that she did not read a report detailing if the advance team for the rally site had enough resources.

"While that may not be her actual job, for her not to be apprised of what is going on is just so negligent," he said.

Crooks' opportunity to scope out the Butler Farm Show fairgrounds venue beforehand and then successfully climb on top of a nearby roof showed "how easy it is," Mikels said.

"What they've done, in my opinion, is they just showed any potential persons who want to do harm how easy it is," he said. "Anybody could have climbed on that roof."

U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testified for hours on Capitol Hill Monday, facing a grilling from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle over the agency’s lapse in security that enabled the assassination attempt on former President Trump. 

Cheatle testified before the House Oversight Committee, led by Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., after he subpoenaed her to appear.

Cheatle admitted under oath that the Secret Service "on July 13th, we failed." 

Comer called on Cheatle to resign, along with other Republican lawmakers. 

But Democrats called for her resignation as well, including Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., who said, "If you have an assassination attempt on a president or a former president or a candidate, you need to resign."

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., at one point told Cheatle that her response that she had "no idea" how her opening statement for the hearing got leaked to media agencies is "bulls---." 

Cheatle also testified Monday that she called former President Trump after the shooting to apologize. 

Former President Trump is escorted off the stage during the shooting at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13. (AP/Gene J. Puskar)

The House Committee on Homeland Security is holding a hearing at 10 a.m. Tuesday on the response to the July 13 Trump assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

The hearing on Capitol Hill, the committee says, will "examine the facts and circumstances surrounding the attempted assassination of former President Donald J. Trump" and "will feature witness testimony from Colonel Christopher L. Paris, commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police, and Patrick Yoes, national president of the Fraternal Order of Police." 

“After over a week of investigations, DHS stonewalling, and Director Cheatle’s refusal to testify before our Committee, the American people and Congress have more questions than answers. I am deeply grateful for the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect our nation’s leaders and our communities,” Chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn., said in a statement. “In order to ensure they succeed in the future, we must find out how the numerous failures took place on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania, and why. 

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Capitol Hill about the attempted assassination of former President Trump. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., announced that she has “filed a privileged motion to impeach Kim Cheatle, Director of the Secret Service.  

“This will force a vote within the next 48 hours,” Mace wrote in a post on X after she grilled Cheatle at a House Oversight Committee hearing Monday focused on the Secret Service’s handling of the Trump rally shooting. 

At one point during that hearing, Mace told Cheatle “You're full of s-- today.” 

"You are being dishonest or lying. You're being dishonest here with this committee," Mace continued. "These are important questions that the American people want answers to. And you're just, you're just dodging and talking around it in generalities. And we had to subpoena you to be here. And you won't even answer the questions. We have asked you repeatedly to answer our questions. This isn't hard. These are not hard questions."