Cheatle says Secret Service 'prefers sterile rooftops' to sloped roofs

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said location had not been an supplier connected nan rooftop wherever a gunman fired shots astatine erstwhile President Donald Trump because nan agency 'prefers sterile rooftops.' 

'A immense mobility that each American has is why wasn't a Secret Service supplier connected nan tile and location person been reports that agents were expected to beryllium connected nan tile but it was basking that time and they didn't want to beryllium connected nan roof. Can you reply anyone's questions director?' Oversight Committee Chair James Comer asked nan director. 

'When we are providing Overwatch whether that beryllium done antagonistic snipers, aliases different exertion for illustration to person sterile rooftops,' Cheatle said.   

Cheatle had initially tried not to reply whether location had been immoderate supplier connected nan tile that time and whether rule enforcement had utilized drones that time to study nan scene, to nan groans of committee members. She later admitted nan FBI had informed Secret Service that nan shooter had flown a drone connected nan time of nan shooting. 

Cheatle could not show lawmakers really nan shooter had gotten onto nan roof.

She was forced to reside accusations that nan Trump squad had requested much information earlier nan shooting and those requests had been denied. 

'For nan arena successful Butler, location were nary requests that were denied,' Cheatle said. 

But erstwhile pressed further by Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan whether nan Trump squad had 'asked for further thief successful immoderate shape aliases different and you told them nary really galore times,' Cheatle said: 'I cannot speak to circumstantial incidents but I tin show you successful wide terms, nan Secret Service is judicious pinch their resources.' 

She said that shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks had been deemed 'suspicious' but not 'threatening' up of erstwhile Trump took nan stage. 

'What I tin opportunity is that nan individual was identified arsenic suspicious. So he was known to beryllium suspicious earlier erstwhile President Trump took nan stage. That is nan accusation I've received,' Cheatle said. 

'Why was he allowed to return nan shape pinch a suspicious personification having been identified?' she was asked. 

'If nan item had been passed accusation that location was a threat. The item would ne'er person brought nan erstwhile president retired onto shape that is what we do and that who we are we are charged pinch protecting each of our protect ease,' Cheatle said. 

'There are a number of times astatine protective events wherever suspicious group are identified, and those individuals person to beryllium investigated and determined.' 

At nan clip of nan shooting, rule enforcement agents were wrong nan building, 147 yards distant from wherever Trump stood, but not connected apical of it. 

Cheatle curiously claimed nary officers had been placed connected nan tile because it was sloped. 

'That building successful peculiar has a sloped tile astatine its highest point. And so, you know, there's a information facet that would beryllium considered location that we wouldn't want to put personification up connected a sloped roof,' she told ABC News successful an question and reply Tuesday.

'And so, you know, nan determination was made to unafraid nan building, from inside.' 

The agency head  took afloat work for nan shooting - and offered condolences to those who had been injured and killed successful nan sohoting. She called nan assassination effort nan 'most important operational nonaccomplishment of nan Secret Service successful decades.'

'The Secret Service's intense ngo is to protect our nation's leaders. On July 13th, we failed,' nan head told lawmakers. 

'As nan Director of nan United States Secret Service, I return afloat work for immoderate information lapse.' 

'Nothing I person said should beryllium interpreted to spot blasted for this nonaccomplishment connected our federal, authorities aliases section rule enforcement partners who supported nan Secret Service.' 

But she's expected nan admit nan Secret Service still has fewer answers astir what happened. The agency 'must study what happened and I will move eden and world to guarantee an incident for illustration July 13th does not hap again. Thinking astir what we should person done otherwise is ne'er acold from my thoughts.' 

'The Secret Service has thousands of labor and a important budget, but it has now go nan look of incompetence,' Comer said astatine nan hearing. 'The Secret Service has a zero-fail mission, but it failed.' 

'No 1 has yet been fired for this historical failure.'  

'Under Director Cheatle's activity we mobility whether anyone is safe, not President Biden, not nan First Lady, not nan White House, not statesmanlike candidates,' Comer went on. 

Top Oversight Democrat Jamie Raskin compared nan Trump assassination effort to different acts of governmental violence, including January 6 and nan shot shooting of Majority Leader Steve Scalise. 

He besides blamed weapon laws. 'The Butler onslaught was not moreover nan deadliest wide shooting successful America connected that day.' 

'Even young group not aged capable to bargain a brew legally tin acquisition and ain AR-15 style weapons.' 

Cheatle has said she will not resign, contempt a oversea of Republican - and a fistful of Democratic - calls to do so. 

Monday's proceeding marks nan first clip nan nationalist will perceive extensively astir what happened from Cheatle nether questioning from nan House Oversight Committee. 

Since nan July 13 shooting, she's done nary property conferences and very fewer interviews, but has insisted she will not resign. 

Last Saturday, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks changeable aggregate rounds at Donald Trump, clipping his ear, injuring aggregate attendees and tragically sidesplitting erstwhile firefighter Corey Comperatore astatine nan Butler, Pa. rally. 

And past week, lawmakers were fixed a backstage briefing by Secret Service wherever they learned nan shooter had been spotted astir an hr earlier he fired his first shot.

Even much troubling, Secret Service counter-snipers saw Crooks connected nan tile 20 minutes earlier he changeable nan erstwhile president. 

Trump walked retired onto nan shape astatine 6:02 p.m.

Then astatine astir 6:12 p.m. Crooks' first shots rang out.

What transpired alternatively was a information nightmare: Thomas Matthew Crooks was capable to standard nan building and unafraid his ain position, while rule enforcement struggled to find him moreover amid pressing warnings from members of nan Trump crowd. But location wasn't capable clip to enactment connected nan tips, she explained.

'The shooter was really identified arsenic a imaginable personification of suspicion,' Cheatle said. 'Unfortunately, pinch nan accelerated succession of really things unfolded, by nan clip that individual was yet located, they were connected nan rooftop and were capable to occurrence disconnected astatine nan erstwhile president.'

She was referencing claims by witnesses that they alerted rule enforcement astir nan threat, but agents weren't capable to destruct nan threat successful time. Officials person pointed to nan first responding officer, who lifted himself up connected nan tile only to little himself backmost erstwhile nan gunman turned his limb astatine him. 

Cheatle has return blasted for nan fateful information breach, but has denied calls to measurement down. 

'The subordinate stops pinch me,' she said.

'It was unacceptable,' she told ABC. 'And it's thing that shouldn't hap again.'

'While we springiness overwhelming acknowledgment to nan individual Secret Service agents who did their jobs nether immense pressure, this calamity was preventable. The Secret Service has a zero neglect mission, but it grounded connected July 13 and successful nan days starring up to nan rally,' Comer is besides expected to say, arsenic he will again telephone for Cheatle's resignation.  

Also coming into mobility connected nan telephone was nan imaginable motive for Crooks to perpetrate specified an atrocity.

Officials did not corroborate an operating motive and said that his rationale remains a mystery. 

Authorities said that they person yet to find immoderate ideological worldly that could radiance ray connected why Crooks decided to sprout nan erstwhile president.

But, they did uncover that Crooks operated respective accounts connected encrypted platforms that they are still moving to summation entree to.

Here's a timeline of really that fateful July 11 went down:

1PM

The grounds to nan arena astatine Butler Farm Show opened astatine 1pm.

It began an hours-long build up that saw MAGA supporters instantly move into nan area to campy out.

Security swept nan area and group up perimeters, nevertheless questions person been raised complete really nan gunman was capable to unafraid a clear changeable conscionable 400ft from nan stage.

5PM

An hr earlier Trump took nan shape astatine astir 5pm, erstwhile GOP Senate campaigner Sean Parnell warmed up nan crowd, bringing cheers arsenic he slammed President Biden and his stuttering campaign.

With nan sun still precocious connected a agleam day, Trump emerged to 'God Bless nan USA' playing complete nan loudspeakers astatine 6:03pm, and remained waving and shaking his fist astatine nan crowd for respective minutes.

6:11PM

Trump brought retired a ample schematic pinch statistic connected nan migrant situation astatine nan confederate border, and told nan crowd astatine 6:11pm: 'That chart's a mates of months old...'

'If you want to really spot thing that's sad, return a look astatine what happened,' Trump continued - earlier he abruptly grabbed nan broadside of his caput arsenic respective 'pops' filled nan arena space.

6:12PM

The 78-year-old dropped to nan level successful an instant arsenic 5 much shots rang overhead successful speedy succession, earlier 4 Secret Service agents raced to nan shape and dove connected apical of nan erstwhile president.

Stunning images showed Trump cowered connected nan level arsenic agents protected him, pinch humor dripping down his cheek.

Several much Secret Service agents continued to flood nan stage, while 4 heavy equipped officers lined nan perimeter ordering attendees to 'get down.'

The sniper, sat 400ft crossed from nan rally connected an exposed rooftop, fired different changeable astatine nan shape a 2nd later while Trump fans streamed retired of nan bleachers.

Secret Service scrambled to return power of nan pandemonium wherever 3 attendees were hit, 1 fatally, wrong a matter of seconds.

6:13PM

An emergency room expert pinch humor spattered connected his garment later said he sprang into action to execute emergency CPR connected 1 victim.

'The feline had spun astir was jammed betwixt nan benches and a caput changeable here. There's tons of humor and he had encephalon matter,' he told CBS News.

'So I sewage him together truthful I sewage group location really helpful. I did CPR thorax compressions arsenic well.'

6:14PM

Microphones surrounding nan shape picked up staggering item of nan urgent response, opening pinch 1 ordering screaming group to 'get down, get down, get down.'

At nan aforesaid moment, snipers group up connected a tile adjacent to bleachers were seen firing backmost astatine nan gunman, pinch Secret Service agents surrounding Trump heard connected microphones confirming nan infinitesimal he was brought down.

Despite nan chaos flying astir nan scene, nan rally appeared to clasp its activity to spot if Trump was hit.

In a move that sparked iconic images group to specify his candidacy, Trump stood up and triumphantly held his fist successful nan air, pumping it astatine his supporters to raucous relief.

'USA, USA, USA,' nan crowd chanted astatine nan sight, pinch a blood-spattered Trump appearing to rima nan connection 'fight' respective times arsenic Secret Service tried to hurry him away.

While getting up disconnected nan floor, an supplier picked up a achromatic cloth and held it to Trump's bleeding ear, telling him to 'hold that connected your head, it's bloody.'

'Are we good?' 1 antheral supplier says, arsenic different responds quickly: 'Shooter down!'

'Shooter's down. Are we bully to move?' 1 says next. 'We're clear, we're clear, we're clear - let's move.'

Trump many times ordered nan agents to 'let maine get my shoes', to which 1 responds: 'I sewage you sir, I sewage you.'

The gunman was killed by agents soon aft opening fire, arsenic footage emerged online showing him look to beryllium changeable successful nan caput while crouched connected nan roof. 

Crooks was seen laying lifeless connected nan rooftop successful a later image, surrounded by rule enforcement stood complete him.  

A number of camouflaged rule enforcement officers emerged from nan broadside of nan stage, portion of a immense rule enforcement beingness that flooded nan area wrong minutes of nan first changeable was fired. 

At 6:14pm, Trump was whisked into his motorcade by astir twelve Secret Service agents, who formed a protective quality shield astir him. 

Before he sewage into his SUV, Trump again raised his fist to signify triumphantly surviving nan assassination attempt.