Though Trump himself said his Secret Service detail did a "fantastic job" protecting him from the shooter, the agency faced swift backlash over the close call.
"This will be highly analyzed, highly scrutinized," said Lauren Bean Buitta, founder of the national security nonprofit Girl Security. "And if there is a security failure identified, the Secret Service and other agencies will be sharing information and lessons from that incident to try to prevent another occurrence."
Political leaders, lawmakers and social media provocateurs on both sides of the aisle sharply questioned how a lone attacker managed to shoot at Trump.
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said in a statement that the incident raised "grave concerns" about the security measures taken — or not taken — to protect Trump, while Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) wrote on social media that "any third grader would know that it'd be malpractice not to have personnel on the rooftop where the shooter was positioned." Others called for resignations of agency leadership.
Cheryl Tyler, a former Secret Service agent, said "a lot of work" goes into preparing for major events involving protected individuals. Typically, an advanced team of agents is assembled to liaise with local law enforcement, search for vulnerabilities on location and map out contingency plans.
The shooter took aim at the former president from a rooftop outside the venue, about 150 meters from where Trump was speaking — a little farther than a football field's length away.
When it comes to determining the placement of a secure perimeter, there is no "rubber-stamping" or "definitive answer," Tyler said of the Secret Service's process.
"The question is, why or why not did the secure perimeter go further? I don't know those answers — only those who did the advance know those answers," Tyler said, suggesting the question is one investigators will likely seek to answer.
The FBI was deemed the lead investigator of the incident, which its director, Christopher Wray, called "nothing short of an attack on democracy and our democratic process."
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
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