Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) claimed on Saturday that the U.S. Secret Service did not attend a law enforcement meeting in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, the date former President Donald Trump was nearly assassinated by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks at a campaign rally.
Johnson told “Sunday Morning Futures” host Maria Bartiromo on Sunday that his team learned the apparent lack of attendance by the Secret Service from local law enforcement.
“The Secret Service did not even attend the 9 o’clock security meeting with local law enforcement,” he told the Fox News host. When she pressed for details, the senator seemed to reveal that while Secret Service visited the site of the Butler rally previously, they “weren’t even there” on the morning of July 13.
Johnson also claimed Secret Service essentially placed Butler County police in charge of coordinating the rally, and confirmed different law enforcement agencies operated in different radio channels.
“Law enforcement wasn’t even on the same channel,” Johnnson stated. He explained, “The sniper and SWAT teams weren’t on the same channel as patrol officers, and they weren’t on the same channel as Secret Service, so they had to relay things.”
There are so many unanswered questions.
We will issue preliminary findings to prompt more people to come forward.
If you have any information, please contact [email protected] pic.twitter.com/7oGx8RYc6H
— Senator Ron Johnson (@SenRonJohnson) July 21, 2024
Johnson confirmed Crooks was first photographed by law enforcement at 5:14 p.m., while the Secret Service counter-sniper did not kill him until 6:11 p.m., nearly one hour later. The senator stated that more revelations are likely to follow, telling Bartiromo, “we’re just scratching the surface.”
Crooks’ bullets pierced Trump’s ear and claimed the life of former fire chief Corey Comperatore, who was shielding his family at the time of his death. Two more were injured.
Johnson also revealed a bipartisan initiative with Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) to interview witnesses of the attempted assassination. Blumenthal is the chairman of the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, where Johnson is a ranking member.
The senator stated he plans to release a “preliminary report” with the primary purpose of soliciting “more eyewitness testimony” of the shooting.
“If you took video, save it. Make a backup copy,” said Johnson. He explained, “We can glean things, in terms of audio, in terms of where the shots came from. Was it one rifle, was it more than one?”
Johnson’s revelations came just days after Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) stated that whistleblowers told him Secret Service provided “loose” security for the event, and staffed it with inexperienced personnel from Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agencies other than the Secret Service.
The senators’ statements come as the Secret Service faces intense scrutiny, and Director Kimberly Cheatle continues to resist mounting calls for her resignation despite confirming on Saturday she will testify before the House Oversight Committee.
Secret Service Spokesman Anthony Gugliemi confirmed Cheatle “will testify before the House Committee on Oversight on Monday.” Gugliemi confirmed the agency “is fully accountable for the safety of its protectees” and is “committed to better understanding what happened before, during, and after the assassination attempt of former President Trump to ensure it never happens again.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Secret Service Snipers” by Edward Kimmel. CC BY-SA 2.0.
