Trump Shot at Rally

(I still think he should've popped a shot in the air as soon as he had seen the guy with the gun, to alert the sniper teams and get Trump protected asap.)
me too. one of the old guy senators at the fbi/SS congressional hearing said this same thing (paraphrase) "in the old days we would have"..but he followed up with (paraphrase) "i know there are reasons not to do this"..so there must be reasons not to do this.
 
Both of his hands are empty.
Yes. But the holster of his fellow officer is not empty, so his own probably isn't either. However, to hit someone lying on a roof from a distance with any chance of success requires a rifle, which he did not have.

However, even a handgun shot (or several), fired in the air, would have alerted Trump's security detail immediately.
 
That video just opens up a whole bunch of new questions for me.

I think most people were assuming that the shooting started almost immediately after the officer was lifted up to the roof. But this video shows it didn't happen until 36 seconds later.

36 seconds is a lot of time in this scenario. Count it out.

It seems unfathomable to me that communication somehow failed to this extent.
 
36 seconds is a lot of time in this scenario. Count it out.

It seems unfathomable to me that communication somehow failed to this extent.
If "officer ladder" was in the chain of command, I can fathom it.

I would really rather wait for the official investigation. It really depends on what the local police told the Secret Service (and when), and what the Secret Service thought it meant.
 
External Quote:
Sen. Josh Hawley said he's been informed by whistleblowers that most of the agents assigned to protect Donald Trump during the assassination attempt at his Butler, Pa., rally in July were Homeland Security personnel who had minimal protective training.

Instead of having dozens of Secret Service agents on his detail for the July 13 rally, Trump was mostly guarded by Homeland Security agents who only received online webinar training before the event, Hawley (R-Mo.) said in an interview on "Jesse Watters Primetime" Tuesday evening.

"A two-hour, online webinar. And I'm told that half the time, the sounds to the webinar didn't even work," Hawley claimed.
https://nypost.com/2024/09/04/us-ne...tnews&utm_campaign=nypost&utm_medium=referral

If true/proven, this will undoubtedly gain traction down the election home stretch. Tough to defend the decision and whoever made it.
 
If true/proven
That's the question, isn't it? It's now more than a month after Hawley opened his tip line, and he still has no hard evidence?

Excerpts from Hawley's website, July 19th:
Article:
Senator Hawley then opened a whistleblower tip line within his office earlier this week, pledging to protect the anonymity of all who contact his staff in an effort to shed light on last Saturday's disastrous security breach.

In addition, whistleblower allegations suggest the majority of DHS officials were not in fact USSS agents but instead drawn from the department's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This is especially concerning given that HSI agents were unfamiliar with standard protocols typically used at these types of events, according to the allegations.

3. Were HSI agents properly trained in staffing these types of events?


I think it's on the news again because Fox News invited him? But the fact that this hadn't been picked up in the interim—and the fact that it's "stop the steal" Hawley—makes me very skeptical.

Why would a webinar not have sound half the time? Maybe because it's a written package?
 
If true/proven, this will undoubtedly gain traction down the election home stretch.
doubtful the MSM will report on it and if they do they will gloss over it saying stuff like "it's normal and typical to use HS agents for details. They are all trained" etc.

this BBC article we can maybe infer that there was only 1 ss agent on his detail. and really how much training would a person need to "throw your body in front of the asset"?

either way it sounds like SS was responsible for the roof not being covered.
Article:
At least five US Secret Service agents have been placed on administrative leave following the attempt on Donald Trump's life in Pennsylvania, US media reports.
They include the head of the the Pittsburgh field office that coordinated security with local police, three other agents in the same office and a member of Trump's personal detail, according to the BBC's US news partner CBS.
 
That's the question, isn't it? It's now more than a month after Hawley opened his tip line, and he still has no hard evidence?

Excerpts from Hawley's website, July 19th:
Article:
Senator Hawley then opened a whistleblower tip line within his office earlier this week, pledging to protect the anonymity of all who contact his staff in an effort to shed light on last Saturday's disastrous security breach.

In addition, whistleblower allegations suggest the majority of DHS officials were not in fact USSS agents but instead drawn from the department's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This is especially concerning given that HSI agents were unfamiliar with standard protocols typically used at these types of events, according to the allegations.

3. Were HSI agents properly trained in staffing these types of events?


I think it's on the news again because Fox News invited him? But the fact that this hadn't been picked up in the interim—and the fact that it's "stop the steal" Hawley—makes me very skeptical.

Why would a webinar not have sound half the time? Maybe because it's a written package?
Would seem to be pretty easy to prove/disprove, subpoena the duty roster from the event and the personnel files of those involved. Assuming their files are similar to DoD civilian personnel files, there will be a list all completed training, as well as mandatory training yet to be completed. Compare the training records of those suspected of not being properly trained to real USSS agents trained for/currently undertaking protection details.
 
Would seem to be pretty easy to prove/disprove, subpoena the duty roster from the event and the personnel files of those involved. Assuming their files are similar to DoD civilian personnel files, there will be a list all completed training, as well as mandatory training yet to be completed. Compare the training records of those suspected of not being properly trained to real USSS agents trained for/currently undertaking protection details.

Article:
The Secret Service did not directly address the claims in response to a request for comment.

"The U.S. Secret Service respects the role of oversight. To date, we have provided over 1,500 pages of responsive documentation to Congress and have made employees available for transcribed interviews," Anthony Guglielmi, the agency's chief of communications, said. "These efforts will continue as our desire to learn from this failure and ensure that it never happens again is unwavering."
 
Article:
The Secret Service did not directly address the claims in response to a request for comment.

"The U.S. Secret Service respects the role of oversight. To date, we have provided over 1,500 pages of responsive documentation to Congress and have made employees available for transcribed interviews," Anthony Guglielmi, the agency's chief of communications, said. "These efforts will continue as our desire to learn from this failure and ensure that it never happens again is unwavering."
Big difference between a request (from a newspaper?) and a Congressional subpoena. A subpoena is backed by force of law. A request, regardless of who it's from, is not.
 
My question is this: Where did Hawley get this information, and how did he confirm the source's authenticity? His whistleblower hotlines are anonymous and unvetted (the same phone number and email addresses also cover a number of other topics including scientific and medical tip reporting so adding this just for this topic would require splitting it from those topics). I was trivially able to get to the point of providing one without giving any identifying information. It was actually easier than the old ADA "print your name on stream" deal that gave us such memes as Weedlord Bonerhitler.

This one would also be at odds with several of his previous whistleblower reports, such as his August 23rd whistleblower allegation that the USSS agents from Trump's assigned detail had specifically not requested additional Homeland Security assets. In this claim he seems to say there were fewer members of Trump's regular detail present than have allegedly already come forward to his tip line!

https://www.hawley.senate.gov/issues/government-accountability/

For another example, on August 1 he says that a whistleblower within Trump's detail reported that USSS agents had been tasked with covering the roof where the shooter was located and had abandoned their post... But his July 22 whistleblower report was that local law enforcement was supposed to cover that roof and didn't secure access (which matches closer to information through verifiable channels).

Clearly at least some of Haley's tips are false and his pursuit of many contradicting claims suggests he's going public before vetting incoming reports. Throwing shit at the wall is a fine way to stay in the news cycle but in an actual investigation it diminishes all of his conflicting claims, even if some subset are genuine.
 
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Big difference between a request (from a newspaper?) and a Congressional subpoena. A subpoena is backed by force of law. A request, regardless of who it's from, is not.
i didnt bold that. the point of my quote was they allegedly provided over 1500 documents. so quite likely personnel records are among those.
 
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i didnt bold that. the point of my quote was they allegedly provided over 1500 documents. so quite likely personnel records are among those.
I did, to highlight "request" and compare/contrast it to "subpoena." "Quite likely" is speculation. The fact is we don't know what, if any, documents are/have been under review by Congress relative to the Trump assassination attempt. Also, no mention of "subpoena" in that USSS press release in the article you posted.

What we do know is a candidate for PotUS was shot and wounded while campaigning under the protection responsibility of the USSS. Authority can be delegated, but responsibility and accountability cannot. If someone from USSS knowing sent out untrained/poorly trained personnel to protect whoever they are/were responsible to protect, they should be held accountable. Did the USSS do that? Don't know, that's why it needs to be investigated.
 
Did the USSS do that? Don't know, that's why it needs to be investigated.
I disagree. Spurious allegations with no evidence should be dismissed.

The NTSB issues reports on plane crashes. In no report do they investigate "allegations that the pilot was not properly qualified". In every report, they go over the prerequisites to legally fly: license, type rating, currency, medical, rest periods—and because all of these are investigated, allegations don't need to be.

Any investigation of the Butler, PA incident would be amiss if it did not build a clear picture of what personnel was involved and what their qualifications were. And that's why these baseless accusations serve no purpose other than an attempt at scandalmongering.
 
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"Quite likely" is speculation.
1500 is a lot of documents. what else could they be? serious question.

ok it wasnt SS the info was asked from, it was Mayorkas. i forgot how confusing mulitple agencies make everything.

sent July 19th to Mayorkas DHS. didn't find any indication of a subpoena being issued yet despite the 7 day deadline. so Hawleys wording in the Jesse Waters interview Sept 3rd is a bit odd.
Article:
In addition, whistleblower allegations suggest the majority of DHS officials were not in fact USSS agents but instead drawn from the department's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This is especially concerning given that HSI agents were unfamiliar with standard protocols typically used at these types of events, according to the allegations.

...

please provide the following information no later than 7 days from now:

1. How did DHS determine to staff the event, including any decision to rely on state or local officers?

2. What percentage of the DHS agents at the event were from HSI rather than USSS? Were a majority of officers at the event drawn from HSI or other DHS components, rather than USSS? If so, why?

3. Were HSI agents properly trained in staffing these types of events?
 
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ok the committee did subpoena Mayorkas but not for specifically items in Hawleys letter.
Article:
07/19/24
Chairman Green Subpoenas DHS Secretary Mayorkas for Documents Regarding Attempted Assassination of Former President Trump

subpoena schedule
https://homeland.house.gov/wp-conte...-Assassination-Attempt-on-President-Trump.pdf



and doesnt seem theyve done anything since then. (first link above is a schedule of the committee)
Mayorkas started a panel to investigate in 45 days (which is basically today..the deadlien) so maybe they were willing to let his panel do their thing first?
Article:
Updated 10:16 PM EDT, July 21, 2024
Share
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has appointed a bipartisan, independent panel to review this month's assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, officials said Sunday.

The panel members will have "extensive law enforcement and security experience to conduct a 45-day independent review of the planning for and actions taken by the U.S. Secret Service and state and local authorities before, during, and after the rally, and the U.S. Secret Service governing policies and procedures," the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
 
I disagree. Spurious allegations with no evidence should be dismissed.

The NTSB issues reports on plane crashes. In no report do they investigate "allegations that the pilot was not properly qualified". In every report, they go over thd prerequisites to legally fly: license, type rating, currency, medical, rest periods—and because all of these are investigated, allegations don't need to be.
You're wrong here, lots of allegations/rumors get run to ground in such investigations, but aircraft mishap investigation isn't the topic. In any event, those "prerequisites" you mentioned are investigated to ensure compliance with mandatory requirements. So if your pilot was assigned/permitted to fly without meeting those mandatory training/currency requirements, he'd/she'd be no different than an agent assigned/permitted to protect a high value target without the mandatory training required by the USSS. The mandatory training/currency requirements set qualification standards.

Did those assigned to protect Trump meet their qualification standards? Don't know, but based on what happened that day, it's a fair question to ask. And I'd ask it regardless of who the intended victim was. This isn't a question of partisan politics for me, it's about whether a federal agency did its job properly, and if not, why not? A candidate could have been killed, innocent civilians were killed/wounded. Lessons learned need to be established and implemented. This is the crux of any professional investigation...find out what happened and why, then do what can be done to preclude/mitigate it from happening again.

Any investigation of the Butler, PA incident would be amiss if it did not build a clear picture of what personnel was involved and what their qualifications were. And that's why these baseless accusations serve no purpose other than an attempt at scandalmongering.
We agree, such an unprofessional investigation would be amiss. Has a thorough investigation already been done? Will be done? By who? Should we be satisfied with an in-house investigation by the USSS, or any organization investigating itself for that matter, as opposed to an independent investigation?
 
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either way it sounds like SS was responsible for the roof not being covered.
Article: At least five US Secret Service agents have been placed on administrative leave following the attempt on Donald Trump's life in Pennsylvania, US media reports.
They include the head of the the Pittsburgh field office that coordinated security with local police, three other agents in the same office and a member of Trump's personal detail, according to the BBC's US news partner CBS. Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyn6p67p0jo
This isn't a question of partisan politics for me, it's about whether a federal agency did its job properly, and if not, why not?
It sounds as if some people were put on leave, but it is not at all clear if they are charged with (or merely suspected of) being remiss in their duties, or are just being used as scapegoats because someone in a high position demanded it. That may not be a thing that is publicized, but it happens. And although I agree with Duke, such demands may be the place that politics raises its ugly head.
 
but it is not at all clear if they are charged with (or merely suspected of) being remiss in their duties, or are just being used as scapegoats because someone in a high position demanded it
there's no indication of either of those. it's just a normal thing companies or agencies or school systems etc do when some thing that needs to be investigated further arise.

not that anyone trusts Fox news but
Article:
The five are still employed but are teleworking and are no longer allowed in the field. They cannot do any investigative work.
 
Did those assigned to protect Trump meet their qualification standards? Don't know, but based on what happened that day, it's a fair question to ask.
To ask a question that's going to be answered in due course anyway means the asker has motivations that go beyond seeking an answer.

To ask it without evidence is propaganda.

"Just asking questions" insinuates things that can't be stated due to lack of evidence, and it's a manipulation technique that makes my skin crawl.

To ask this question publicly, in the news, and be honest about, you'd have to know that the investigation isn't looking at this, but Hawley is not claiming that, because it'd be a provable fact. He's not claiming that the personnel were badly trained, either. All he's doing is to amplify anonymous allegations that fit his agenda. You cannot trust him to ask fair questions. Hawley implied in an interview in January 2020 that Biden might not become president. He does not fight fair.

"Is the Earth flat?" It's a fair question to ask.
"Are aliens living among us?" It's a fair question to ask.
"Are contrails safe?" It's a fair question to ask.
"Was 9/11 a controlled demolition?" It's a fair question to ask.
No, it's not!
If there's no evidence that justifies asking the question, then the question is solely born from fear and imagination, and asking it publicly is fear-mongering.

Hawley stokes the fears that Trump's security detail was negligently badly trained, and that the investigation is going to cover it up. Without any evidence, that's not fair.

Edit: When you're ignorant, asking questions is a good way to learn. But when you have a way to learn (as Representative Hawley certainly does), then asking questions in public sends the message that there are no answers. If these answers do exist, then posing the question as if they did not is not fair.
 
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so, half the clients had no sound all the time?
That depends on exactly what he was told, and by whom. "I was told" could easily just be a complaint from a single person, and that ought to be the default interpretation of the phrase; other tenses, aspects, and voices exist to imply more than a single report (e.g. "I have been told" implies a habituality, and therefore repetition of the telling), and of course he could just be explicit, were he to want to communicate clearly. If what he said was turned into a bug report, I'd close it immediately as not having enough information to act on.
 
Hawley stokes the fears that Trump's security detail was negligently badly trained, and that the investigation is going to cover it up. Without any evidence, that's not fair.
Hawley stokes fears that everybody's security detail is potentially badly trained.

if he hasnt received answers from his letter to Mayorkas that is messed up. Hawley is on the oversight committee. There really is no reason to have not provided such simple documentation almost 2 months later.

and there is evidence ..people died. Obviously someones were badly trained.

In the congressional hearings thus far, both sides of the aisle were ripping into the witnesses. Kamala Harris, a woman who wasn't elected by the people, has SS security detail too. Congress, in our highly divisive country, has SS security detail. I think it's fair if the oversight committee wants to know what training the protective details have.

Are we supposed to trust Homeland Security to protect us against terrorists when it takes them 2 months to look up what training a handful of people had? Not a good look. Hawley going public highlights this and helps to light a fire under DHS bum.
I'm sure the three women agents who are being mocked in all those "three stooges" videos all over the internet would prefer Mayorkas prove they are properly trained too. I imagine the SS agents who werent at fault also would prefer Mayorkas move his bum.
 
Kamala Harris, a woman who wasn't elected by the people, has SS security detail too.
I'mma ignore your post otherwise, but how big must your grudge be if you can't write "Kamala Harris, the Vice President, ...". :o

AP20287513280803-2-1602731581.jpg

Looks like she was elected just the same as Biden.
 
I'mma ignore your post otherwise, but how big must your grudge be if you can't write "Kamala Harris, the Vice President, ...". :o

you mean like how everytime someone says Trump, they say "ex-President Trump"? i'm not understanding your point, sorry. Everyone knows she is Vice President.
 
Your gratuitous comment was not stuck in there to discuss her safety.
it very specifically was. she might have a target on her back as she wasn't voted in as the nominee. that was the point i was making. It is imperative her security detail is properly/well trained. Or do you disagree with that too?
 
This was news to me, that there's a range of opinion coming from very different political viewpoints, that the shooting was staged.
External Quote:
For Democrat Camille, Trump's team orchestrated this to boost his chances of winning the election.

Wild Mother - who already follows QAnon, the unfounded conspiracy theory which claims Donald Trump is involved in a secret war against an elite cabal of Satan-worshipping paedophiles - wants to believe Trump's own team staged the attack in order to frame his supposed enemies in the "Deep State".

'I hate Trump, she likes him - we both think he staged assassination attempts'

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvglm0rjy2go
 
PS last Friday the SS took full responsibility for Butler shooting. Gave update as to findings/details of what went wrong
1:51 some of the findings:
-SS did not give clear guidance ordirection to our local law enforcemnet partners.
-communication deficiencies
-over reliance on mobile devices resulting in information being siloed
-did not co-locate its security room with local law enforcement
-line of sight concerns were not escalated to supervisors

4:30 while some [of advance team]were diligent, there was complacency on the part of others that led to breach of security protocols.

etc
https://www.c-span.org/video/?53858...date-trump-assassination-attempt-pennsylvania
 
did they address the allegations of their personnel not being fit for the job?
i dont recall hearing anything like that, but i watched it in full last Friday.

He did say there will be disciplinary action taken. There are two departments (forget the names)..something like Office of Ethics and Office of______... who are reviewing and will determine. BUT i dont recall anything about the agents on the ground NEAR Trump. more he was talking about the planning team. (i got the impression it's only 1 person who might be disciplined. possibly 2)

Oh he did say they need to rely on Homeland Security personnel less, alot of talk about budget. They elevated every candidate to Biden level protection, and for example they have the U.N thing this week with hundreds? of dignitary that will need protection etc.

"a paradigm shift" is the phrase he used in the context of needing to rely on outside agencies less to fill gaps in their personnel but communication of expectations to outside partners was my main takeaway, not that anyone wasnt trained.

Anyway, SS are in talks with Congress about budget, they have like [200] applicants this year. But they go through the training school and then they need at least 4 years in the field where they learn to hone their skills before they are put on high level stuff like Presidential detail.

edit 400 not 200..
Article:
47:44
the fiscal year we're going to hire more than 400 special agents this year uh right now uh looks like we're going to
 
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@Mendel searching for the youtube version of his talk (and answers to reporters questions) as youtube transcript easier to search, i see MSM has articles up today. CNN here state it better than i just did. This report is from Congress committee, not SS.
Article:
CNN

Secret Service agents failed to take charge of decision-making for security at the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally where former President Donald Trump was shot in July, a bipartisan Senate committee revealed in a new report Wednesday, leading to key lapses in preparation and communication that day.
...
Some of the problems highlighted include the Secret Service failing to set up visual barriers around the rally that may have blocked shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks' view of Trump, the lack of a plan on how to secure the building the shooter took aim from and the general chaos of communication around the shooter's movement leading up to the attempt on the former president's life.

Homeland Security Committee Chairman Sen. Gary Peters told CNN Wednesday morning that his panel heard "a lot of finger-pointing" when they pressed Secret Service agents about who was in charge the day of the rally.

"That should be a very clear answer, and the problem is, there is no answer," Peters, a Michigan Democrat, said on "CNN News Central."

"That was astonishing to us. We could not find one point of contact who said, 'This was the person in charge,'" he added.

same article CNN:
Article:
"Overall, the lack of an effective chain of command, which came across clearly when we conducted interviews," Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat who is leading the subcommittee's investigation, told reporters Tuesday. "It was almost like an Abbott and Costello farce, with 'who's on first?' finger pointing by all of the different actors."

In a statement Wednesday, Anthony Guglielmi, the Secret Service's chief of communications, said the report's findings are in line with the agency's own around the failures that day and highlighted the increased protection Trump has received since.

"Many of the insights gained from the Senate report align with the findings from our mission assurance review and are essential to ensuring that what happened on July 13 never happens again," Guglielmi said.

...
Those involved in security planning could also not agree on who – whether agents from the Pittsburgh field office, the office of protective operations or Trump's own Secret Service detail – was ultimately responsible for decision-making or how the process even worked.
 
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did they address the allegations of their personnel not being fit for the job?
26 mins he talks about relying less on Homeland security and other outside agencies.
52 mins he talks about starting a training center for local law enfore=cement (here he is more talking about the golf course shooting..which went off fine but theyd like local law enforcement to have a bit more training as partners.

searching a few terms in transcript i dont see anything related to that alleged online course HS personnel allegedly took


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aJpssNFzDo
 
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