Americans say Secret Service must fix systemic errors – Grand Forks Herald

The two security breaches during a presidential election campaign within a few months represent an unprecedented threat to democracy.

Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle was fired by President Joe Biden following the assassination attempt on Republican candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. The gunman came within 450 feet of the former president and came within millimeters of killing him. The Secret Service had no surveillance of the rooftop where the gunman was sitting and relied on local law enforcement, who had seen the gunman minutes before the shooting but had not warned the Secret Service.

This is the fault of the secret service and Cheatle was rightly fired.

The Secret Service's strategy was troubling at best. The agency said it was working with local law enforcement and seemed to justify the collapse by saying it always supports local law enforcement, who are always competent. But in this case, that was not the case.

Deputy director Ronald Rowe said it was unacceptable that the roof was not secured.

The first shooter came within 137 meters of Trump. He had been seen several minutes earlier. Given the circumstances, the rally was neither postponed nor canceled.

The fact that the second shooter hid on a golf course for 12 hours and brought a sack lunch while he waited for his chance speaks volumes about the system. The Secret Service admitted that it did not search the perimeter of the golf course before the former president played. Another glaring error.

And only three in 10 Americans are extremely or very confident that the Secret Service can protect presidential candidates, according to a recent AP poll. That's a very low level of confidence. Seven in 10 believe the Secret Service bears some responsibility for the assassination attempts.

Half of those surveyed believe that political divisions have played a “major role” in the attacks. Now, this view is being reinforced on social media.

The sociopathic environment we live in is also fueled by political rhetoric. Elon Musk wondered aloud why no one tried to kill “Biden-Kamala.” Trump himself pushed the bravado after he was shot the first time, telling everyone he would never be defeated.

And then there is the widespread availability of weapons. Four in ten said that this was “largely” responsible for the assassination attempts.

Rowe said Congress needs to provide more resources. We agree. Hire as many new agents as needed. Provide training to local law enforcement weeks in advance. Establish resilient communication channels.

But the Secret Service needs to review its actions with the help of independent investigators. Congress should immediately fund additional agents, equipment, training and resources.

Saving democracy by ensuring a safe environment for candidates during their campaigns should be the top priority of the world's vaunted and best security force.

(c)2024 The Free Press (Mankato, Minn.) Distributed by

Tribune Content Agency, LLC.