Panel looking into Trump assassination attempt says Secret Service needs ‘fundamental reform’
An independent panel investigating the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally says the Secret Service needs fundamental reform” and new leadership that “another Butler can and will happen again” without major changes in how candidates are protected
WASHINGTON (AP) — An independent panel investigating the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally says the Secret Service needs fundamental reform" and new leadership, and that “another Butler can and will happen again” without major changes in how candidates are protected.
The review faulted the Secret Service for poor communications that day and failing to secure the building where the gunman took his shots. It also found more systemic issues at the agency such as a failure to understand the unique risks facing Trump and a culture of doing “more with less.”
The 52-page report issued Thursday recommended bringing in new, outside leadership and refocusing on the Secret Service's protective mission.
“The Secret Service as an agency requires fundamental reform to carry out its mission,” the authors wrote Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas of the Homeland Security Department, the Secret Service's parent agency, in a letter accompanying their report. “Without that reform, the Independent Review Panel believes another Butler can and will happen again.”
