Nation deserves answers on Trump shooting

After hours of congressional testimony Monday from Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, we know little more about the security failure that led to the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a campaign rally earlier this month in Pennsylvania.

More often than not, Cheatle referred to an ongoing investigation — one she said would not be complete for 60 days. Or, she dodged questions from the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, commenting with some version of, "I do not have that information at this time."  While Cheatle accepted responsibility for what she called a "failure," during her testimony, she specifically refused to resign, no matter how many times members of Congress, from both parties, asked her to do so.

After the hearing, Reps. James Comer, a Republican, and Jamie Raskin, a Democrat — the committee's chairman and ranking member respectively — issued a joint letter to Cheatle calling on her to resign.

At this point, Cheatle's resignation is just a matter of time and the sooner the better, as the overhaul of this $3 billion agency must start immediately.  

Cheatle attempted to distinguish between someone considered "suspicious" and someone who's a "threat." Apparently, law enforcement was aware of 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who has been identified as the shooter, long before Trump took the stage — but Crooks was only deemed "suspicious." Crooks, Cheatle confirmed, flew a drone over the site on the day of the attack. And, she said, emergency personnel saw Crooks on the roof — and photographed him — a full 18 minutes before Trump took the stage.

On too many outstanding questions, Cheatle had no answers. Did the Secret Service have its own drone actively surveilling over the site and, if not, why not? Did anyone pass along information about the "suspicious" behavior? How was Crooks able to reach the roof — with an AR-15-style rifle — and position himself in place to be able to shoot at Trump? Why didn't anyone try to stop Crooks, or, alternatively, stop Trump from taking the stage? "We don't know" is the insufficient answer to all those questions.

A presidential campaign is underway, with additional complications in the uncertainty left in the wake of President Joe Biden's decision to step aside. The nation requires confidence that the Secret Service is capable of protecting our leaders. Changes to protocol and procedure must be made quickly to prevent operational failures.

It's clear there were stunningly egregious lapses in judgment and leadership before and during Trump's rally in Butler County, Pa. But it is unclear whether our security professionals even understand the problems — much less the solutions. Even if Cheatle's evasive responses were due to an ongoing investigation, she provided no reassurance that she is the person who could lead the changes. 

This nation came very close to losing a former president and current candidate to an assassin's bullet. Those whose lives are on the line deserve answers, and so do the American people.