Washington — Top officials with the U.S. Secret Service and FBI are testifying before two Senate committees Tuesday about the security lapses that led to the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
The joint hearing with FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate and Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe marks the third congressional proceeding in just over a week focused on the shooting at Trump’s rally, where he and two others were injured, and one attendee was killed. Abbate and Rowe are testifying before members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee and Judiciary Committee.
In his opening statement, Abbate revealed the FBI had discovered a social media account believed to belong to the shooter that left “extreme” comments online in 2019 and 2020, including comments that “appear to reflect antisemitic and anti-immigration themes” and “espouse political violence.”
The fallout from the July 13 attack led to the resignation of former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who announced her decision to step down from her post just one day after she faced sharp criticism from the House Oversight and Accountability Committee. Rowe, the agency’s deputy director, was appointed to temporarily lead the Secret Service.
The Secret Service has faced significant criticism in the wake of the attack, as questions have arisen as to how the gunman, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was able to gain access to a rooftop so close to where Trump was addressing the crowd of supporters in Butler, Pennsylvania. He was killed by a Secret Service sniper after firing eight rounds from the roof of a building belonging to AGR International, which was outside the security perimeter controlled by the agency.
Here’s the latest from the hearing: