ABC Exclusive: Trump rally shooting 'unacceptable,' Secret Service director says

16 Jul 2024

During her debut televised interview following the attack on former President Donald Trump, U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle expressed her disapproval of the Pennsylvania rally shooting.

"It was not okay," she expressed in a conversation on Monday with ABC News' Chief Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas. "And it's important that it doesn't occur again."

Kimberly Cheatle, who is in charge of the U.S. Secret Service, has a conversation with ABC News on July 15, 2024.

The violent attack that occurred on Saturday resulted in the death of one of the participants. It was the first time a sitting or former president was injured in an assassination attempt since Ronald Reagan in 1981.

When Cheatle first heard about the shooting, she was surprised and worried - not just for Trump, but also for the Secret Service agents who were involved.

"It was definitely a difficult situation that no Secret Service agent hopes to experience during their career," she remarked.

Being the leader of the agency, Cheatle mentioned that it is her duty to look into what went amiss and ensure that such an incident will not occur in the future.

TIMEFRAME: The sequence of events during the attempted assassination of Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania

"It's my responsibility," she stated. "I am in charge of the Secret Service, and I must ensure that we are conducting a thorough evaluation and providing support to our staff as needed."

Cheatle addressed claims that the suspect was spotted and recognized as possibly dangerous before the shooting occurred, stating that only a brief amount of time elapsed between that moment and the gunfire.

Ex-President Donald Trump is escorted by Secret Service agents as he is assisted off the platform during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday, July 13, 2024.

The blogpost includes a picture from the Associated Press taken by Gene J. Puskar.

"I don't have all the specifics right now, but it happened quickly," she explained. "Locating, identifying, and ultimately stopping that individual happened rapidly, and it presents a challenging situation."

Cheatle also mentioned that the local authorities were responsible for making sure the building was safe after the shooter fired the shots and was later taken down by a sniper from the Secret Service. He also confirmed that the local police were inside the building while the shooter was on the roof.

"In this case, we provided support for that site and the Secret Service was in charge of the inner perimeter," Cheatle explained. "We requested help from our local partners for the outer perimeter. Local police were present inside the building and in the surrounding area to maintain the outer perimeter."

The examination of the attempted assassination of Trump is currently centering on the reason behind the attack.

Cheatle stated that she has contacted Trump, but they have not had a conversation yet.

Since the attack occurred, Cheatle and the Secret Service have been under increasing examination for not stopping the incident, with some even suggesting they should step down.

Cheatle stated that she has no plans to step down from her position.

She is scheduled to give testimony in front of the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee on the upcoming Monday, July 22nd.