US Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle has resigned following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania earlier this month. Cheatle, who testified for nearly six hours during a contentious House committee hearing on Monday, faced increasing frustration from lawmakers over her refusal to answer questions about the security breach.
In her resignation letter on Tuesday, Cheatle took full responsibility for the security lapse. “As your Director, I take full responsibility for the security lapse,” she wrote. Both Democrats and Republicans had been calling for her to step down.
In her letter to staff, Cheatle expressed her dedication to the agency and her regret over the decision. “I have always put the needs of the agency first,” she said, adding that the intense scrutiny over the last week and the increasing operational tempo influenced her decision. “I do not want my calls for resignation to be a distraction from the great work each and every one of you do towards our vital mission.”
President Joe Biden acknowledged Cheatle’s decades of public service in a statement and noted the ongoing independent review into the July 13 incident. “The independent review to get to the bottom of what happened on July 13 continues, and I look forward to assessing its conclusions. We all know what happened that day can never happen again,” Biden said, adding that he will appoint a new director soon.
Cheatle was appointed by Biden to head the Secret Service in 2022, after serving 27 years in various roles within the agency.
The shooting at the July 13 rally resulted in the death of one audience member and the wounding of two others. A bullet grazed Trumpās ear. In response to Cheatle’s resignation, Trump posted on his social media platform, “The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me, and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy.”
During the tense House Oversight Committee hearing, Cheatle acknowledged the security failures but resisted calls to resign. She described the incident as “the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades.”
Witnesses at the rally reported seeing suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks with a rifle on a rooftop minutes before the shots were fired. Crooks was killed by a counter-sniper shortly after the shooting began. Lawmakers were particularly concerned about how Crooks managed to access the rooftop and why Trump was allowed to take the stage despite potential threats.
Following the hearing, Committee leaders James Comer and Jamie Raskin sent a letter to Cheatle, urging her resignation. Comer stated that Cheatle āinstilled no confidenceā in her ability to fulfill the Secret Serviceās protective mission.
In a statement, Comer said, “The Oversight Committeeās hearing resulted in Director Cheatleās resignation and there will be more accountability to come.” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson called her resignation “overdue” and emphasized the need to restore public trust in the Secret Service. “Now we have to pick up the pieces, we have to rebuild the American people’s faith and trust in the Secret Service,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
