Republican lawmakers have announced that they would launch swift investigations into how a sniper managed to evade Secret Service agents, climb onto the roof of a building near where Donald Trump was speaking at an election rally, and fire multiple shots before being killed.
Early media reports indicate the shooter was outside the security perimeter of the rally venue in Butler, Pennsylvania.
A witness interviewed by the BBC said he attempted to alert police and the Secret Service about the sniper, but his warnings went unheeded.
Supporters of Trump harshly criticised the Secret Service, which is primarily responsible for protecting Trump as a former U.S. president.
Billionaire Elon Musk called for the agency’s leadership to resign.
“How was a sniper with a full rifle kit allowed to bear crawl onto the closest roof to a presidential nominee?” asked conservative activist Jack Posobiec on X.
House Speaker Mike Johnson stated on social media that the House would have Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and other officials from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the FBI appear for a hearing before the committees “ASAP.”
The Secret Service announced shortly after the incident that it had begun an investigation and briefed Democratic President Joe Biden, Trump’s rival in the upcoming election. The agency did not immediately respond to additional requests for comment regarding its protocols.
The Pennsylvania State Police referred questions to the Secret Service, which did not immediately respond.
Ben Maser, an attendee outside the rally perimeter, noticed two officers seemingly looking for someone and began scanning the area himself. “I saw the guy on the roof. I told the officer that he was up there. He went about looking for him,” said Maser, a 41-year-old welder.
The attack is expected to prompt a review of Trump’s security, with likely increased protection levels akin to those for a sitting president, according to Joseph LaSorsa, a former Secret Service agent who served on the presidential detail. “There will be an intensive review of the incident and a massive realignment,” LaSorsa said. “This cannot happen.”
The Secret Service stated it had recently added “protective resources and capabilities” to Trump’s security detail, though it did not provide further details.
A retired agent who worked in protective services, speaking anonymously, said the incident should spark an internal review and ideally an external one. “The gravity of the situation demands thorough scrutiny to prevent such failures in the future and to ensure accountability on all levels,” the former agent said.
Typically, local police aid the Secret Service in securing rally venues, and agents from other DHS agencies, such as the Transportation Security Administration, occasionally help.
Ensuring security at Trump rallies, which often feature thousands of attendees and take place in open-air settings, is no easy task.
Before events, agents scan venues for bombs or other threats, and Trump arrives in a fortified motorcade. Law enforcement officials put up barriers as a perimeter and require attendees to go through metal detectors and be patted down by agents.
Paul Eckloff, a former Secret Service agent, stated that agents would have surveyed all rooftops with a line of sight ahead of time. “This person either concealed themselves until they became a threat or were not a threat until they revealed their weapons,” said Eckloff.
After Trump was injured, Secret Service personnel quickly surrounded him, forming a human shield. Heavily armed agents took to the stage, scanning the area for further threats. Trump was whisked to a local hospital by agents in a black SUV, according to the campaign.
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