Secret Service director lied when asked if the Trump security team had asked for additional secret Service assets

WASHINGTON, DC- Last week, an assassin’s bullet missed killing former President Trump by what is estimated to be less than a centimeter or two. After the shooting, the Secret Service, including its director Kimberly Cheatle, denied reports that the Trump campaign had requested enhanced security. In fact, Cheatle told Trump campaign leadership last week in Wisconsin that no such requests had been made. 

However after details have been released and questions arise regarding the Secret Service’s handling of the Butler, Pennsylvania campaign rally, the organization has now admitted that they lied and in fact had turned down requests from Trump’s security detail in the two years leading up to the failed assassination, Newsweek reports. 

The shooting in Pennsylvania on July 13 injured the former president, with a bullet grazing his right ear. A former fire chief, Corey Comperatore,50, threw himself on top of his wife and daughter and paid with his life. Two other men, David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74, suffered serious injuries but are expected to survive. 

A day after the shooting, Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesperson for the Secret Service, wrote on X:

“There’s an untrue assertion that a member of the former president’s team requested additional security resources and that those were rebuffed. This is absolutely false,” he wrote. 

This week, however, Guglielmi changed his tune, noting that some requests from the former president’s detail had been denied. He told the Washington Post that the Secret Service became aware of “new” information that indicated Secret Service headquarters may have denied requests for additional assistance. 

“The Secret Service has a vast, dynamic, and intricate mission,” Guglielmi said in a statement to Newsweek this week. “Every day we work in a dynamic threat environment to ensure our protectees are safe and secure across multiple events, travel, and other challenging environments. We execute a comprehensive and layered strategy to balance personnel, technology, and specialized operational needs.” 

Continuing, he said that in some cases “where specific Secret Service specialized units or resources were not provided, the agency made modifications to ensure the security of the protectee. This may include utilizing state or local partners to provide specialized functions or otherwise identifying alternatives to reduce public exposure of a protectee.” 

Last week, however, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO.) said whistleblowers had come forward and revealed disturbing information about security at the Butler, Pennsylvania rally. 

“Whistleblowers who have direct knowledge of the event have approached my office. According to the allegations,’ the July 13 rally was considered to be a ‘loose’ security event,” Sen. Hawley wrote. 

“For example, detection canines were not used to monitor entry and detect threats in the usual manner. Individuals without proper designations were able to gain access to backstage areas. Department personnel did not appropriately police the security buffer around the podium and were also not stationed at regular intervals around the event’s security perimeter,” Hawley continued. 

Hawley detailed the whistleblower allegations to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. 

He further wrote, “In addition, whistleblower allegations suggest the majority of DHS officials were not in fact USSS agents but instead drawn from the department’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This is especially concerning given that hSI agents were unfamiliar with standard protocols typically used at these types of events, according to the allegations.” 

Hawley issued a list of seven demands from Mayorkas, which given his history will probably be met with crickets. 

In response to the admission that the Secret Service had indeed refused extra security requested by the Trump team, Donald Trump Jr. responded on X:

“Oh, so USSS brass lied! They flagrantly denied something they could have checked in two seconds, then after an uproar they turned around and told the truth a week later about a simple request for more manpower on my father’s detail. Why try to hide that easily discoverable fact?” 

Florida Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) also wrote on X:

“Dir. Cheatle lied to us. She must immediately hold a press conference, tell the truth, & put out all available info, then resign. If she refuses, @POTUS needs to fire her tomorrow. I’m still waiting for the answers to these questions I sent two days ago…” 

Mayorkas did not escape harsh criticism either:

The latest revelation will likely increase calls for Cheatle to resign, or for Biden to fire her. Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) introduced legislation to reduce Cheatle's salary to $1 if she refuses to resign.