Monday’s House Oversight Committee hearing regarding the attempted assassination of former President Donald J. Trump evolved into a rare moment of near-bipartisan unity as lawmakers demanded United States Secret Service (USSS) Director Kimberly Cheatle resign. As Cheatle‘s questioning progressed through the morning and early afternoon, committee members became increasingly alarmed by the lack of information Cheatle was willing to provide and her seeming incompetence.
Cheatle—who from 2019 to 2022 served as the global director of security for PepsiCo.—sat for nearly four and a half hours as lawmakers peppered her with questions regarding the lapses in security that resulted in a 20-year-old shooter being able to get within 200 yards of Trump and nearly assassinate him. While the hearing could have been an opportunity to assuage concerns on Capitol Hill and among the American public, Cheatle offered little transparency.
Calls for Cheatle’s resignation were nearly unanimous, although Representative Pete Sessions (R-TX) stopped short of demanding she step down and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) avoided the conversation altogether.
Three exchanges between lawmakers and Cheatle best summarize the hearing overall.
CHEATLE’S EGO EXPOSED.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) engaged in one of the most aggressive pushes among the lawmakers regarding Cheatle‘s resistance to calls for her resignation from the USSS. The Flordia Democrat asked: “You said there’s going to be accountability. I understand that you don’t want to give us names. When you say that, are you telling the committee that once [the investigation] is concluded, that you’re prepared to fire the people on the ground who made poor decisions that day?”
Cheatle attempted to dodge the question, saying she was prepared to “take the actions necessary” before Moskowitz intervened and pressed again if she would fire those who failed in their duties. Again, Cheatle offered only a non-answer.
The USSS director’s lack of candor instigated a telling question from Moskowitz, who had grown frustrated with Cheatle. “Let me ask this question a different way. If Trump had been assassinated that day, if the gunman had succeeded, would you have come and tendered your resignation?” he asked.
Cheatle responded: “I would still be sitting here because I would want to ensure the integrity of the investigation.”
While Moskowitz acknowledged that it was fair that she would want to set the process in motion, he pressed again, asking if she would have acknowledged the need for new leadership at the USSS if “a president was assassinated on [her] watch.” Cheatle, as she had done throughout the hearing, refused to give a direct response.
Congressman Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., joins chorus of lawmakers calling on Secret Service director to resign.pic.twitter.com/0asS0YzfJp
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) July 22, 2024
CAUGHT IN A LIE?
Next, Cheatle struggled to give an honest answer to Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI) regarding evidence and information that had been communicated to her by officials at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Tired of Cheatle’s non-answers, Rep. McClain told the USSS director the best way to keep her job was to answer the questions honestly and “not play this shell game.”
When pressed on when she began preparing for the hearing, Cheatle couldn’t offer a date, leaving the Michigan Republican exasperated. McClain then asked Cheatle if she’d communicated with the FBI and with whom. At first, the USSS director would not answer as to what FBI officials she was communicating with, though she eventually relented and acknowledged she had spoken with the agency’s director and deputy director.
“How many shell casings were on the roof?” Rep. McClain asked Cheatle, noting the USSS director had acknowledged that the FBI had given her an exact number despite the fact she had declined to answer in her earlier testimony. Cheatle responded: “I would refer to the FBI.”
McClain again asked how many shell casings were found on the roof where the assassin was positioned. Again, Cheatle referred the Congresswoman to the FBI—refusing to share information with the committee.
FULL VIDEO: Rep. Lisa McClain pummels US Secret Service chief Kim Cheatle.
McClain: “What are you covering up? What are you hiding, my friend?”
Cheatle: “I’m not covering anything up.”
I’ve never seen a hearing so fired up. The public demands answers and Cheatle refuses to… pic.twitter.com/xqLGHtmSMK
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) July 22, 2024
LACK OF TRANSPARENCY.
The final exchange with Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) was the most telling of the day. The Florida Republican questioned why the USSS had not held a single press conference informing the American public as to updates regarding the attempted assassination of former President Trump. Cheatle acknowledged that neither she nor Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had held a single press conference.
“This is how misinformation flies in the darkness. In the absence of information,” Rep. Waltz said of the lack of public transparency from the USSS. He continued: “Are you aware that national news anchors are saying this was a hoax? On national television, they’re saying, ‘No, the president wasn’t shot; it was flying glass.’ Are you aware of that?”
Cheatle responded: ” I have not heard those reports.”
“Are you aware that there are rumors rampant online that there were multiple shooters?” Waltz pressed, with Cheatle responding: “Yes.”
“Are you aware that because the shooter had overseas encrypted platforms in Belgium, New Zealand, and Germany, that a lot of people are speculating there could have been foreign involvement? Logically?” he asked Cheatle, with the USSS director admitting she was aware.
“And have you done anything to disabuse any of these notions today?” the Florida Congressman asked before answering for Cheatle: “No.”
“This is how misinformation flies!”
Rep. Mike Waltz calls out the Secret Service director for failing to hold a single press conference in the nine days since the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/IhzUHZdksE
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) July 22, 2024
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