Lawmakers issue bipartisan call on Secret Service chief to resign following security failures

WASHINGTON

Republican House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat who is the committee's ranking member, called for the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on Monday.

"On July 13, 2024, the United States Secret Service under your leadership failed to protect former President Donald Trump from an assassination attempt that took the life of Corey Comperatore and seriously injured at least two other people," said Comer and Raskin in a joint statement.

"Today, you failed to provide answers to basic questions regarding that stunning operational failure and to reassure the American people that the Secret Service has learned its lessons and begun to correct its systemic blunders and failures," said the bipartisan statement.

"In the middle of a presidential election, the committee and the American people demand serious institutional accountability and transparency that you are not providing. We call on you to resign as director as a first step to allowing new leadership to swiftly address this crisis and rebuild the trust of a truly concerned Congress and the American people," it added.

The statement came after Cheatle testified before the committee, during which she was grilled multiple times by House lawmakers on the timeline of the shooting and faced calls from several members to step down.

Earlier, Comer opened the hearing with his call for Cheatle to resign, saying: "Americans demand accountability, but no one has yet to be fired for this historic failure. It is my firm belief, Director Cheatle, that you should resign."

Cheatle admitted that the assassination attempt on the former president was "the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades," adding: "On the 13th, we failed. As director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse of our agency."