US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle Resigns Following Donald Trump Assassination Bid

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Kimberly Cheatle, the Director of the US Secret Service, has resigned after facing criticism over security failures during an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. Her resignation follows her appearance at the first hearing where she was questioned about the incident.

Cheatle faced tough questions from the House Oversight Committee on Monday about how the Secret Service handled the assassination attempt. In an email to her staff, Cheatle took full responsibility for the security lapse and said she was stepping down with a heavy heart due to recent events.

Calls for her resignation had been growing, especially after her unsatisfactory testimony about the agency’s failure to protect Trump. Cheatle’s resignation came a day after she was heavily criticized by both Democrats and Republicans during a congressional committee hearing. She described the incident as the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades but angered lawmakers by not answering specific questions about the investigation.

The shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, managed to get within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage where Trump was speaking, even though there was an increased security presence due to a previous threat from Iran.

Why did she resign?

Out of guilt she said, “I take full responsibility for the security lapse,” she said in the email to staff Tuesday. “In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director.”

Cheatle’s resignation comes a day after appeared before a congressional committee and was berated by hours by both Democrats and Republicans for the security failures. She called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades and said she takes fully responsibility for the security lapses, but angered lawmakers by failing to answer specific questions about the investigation.