US Secret Service Chief Admits Failure in Trump Shooting

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on the security lapses that allowed an attempted assassination of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, July 22, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt
US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on the security lapses that allowed an attempted assassination of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, July 22, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt
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US Secret Service Chief Admits Failure in Trump Shooting

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on the security lapses that allowed an attempted assassination of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, July 22, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt
US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle attends a House of Representatives Oversight Committee hearing on the security lapses that allowed an attempted assassination of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, July 22, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle admitted to Congress on Monday that she and her agency failed when a would-be assassin wounded Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

"We failed," Cheatle said in testimony before the House of Representatives Oversight Committee.

"The assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13th is the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades."

Republican and Democratic lawmakers called on her to resign, calls that she rebuffed, saying at one point, "I think that I am the best person to lead the Secret Service at this time."

Asked about why there were no agents on the roof where the shooter was located or if the Secret Service used drones to monitor the area, Cheatle said she is still waiting for the investigation to play out, prompting groans and outbursts from members on the committee.
“Director Cheatle, because Donald Trump is alive, and thank God he is, you look incompetent," said Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. “If he were killed you would look culpable.”
Trump was wounded in the ear, and two other attendees were injured after Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire.
The Secret Service has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before the assassination attempt. But, Cheatle said that there were “no assets denied" for the Trump rally on July 13.

"The level of security provided for the former president increased well before the campaign and has been steadily increasing as threats evolve," Cheatle said.

She declined to answer specific questions about the day's security plan from openly frustrated Republicans and Democrats, saying the matter was being investigated internally.

Monday's hearing marked the first round of congressional oversight of the attempted assassination.

On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray will appear before the House Judiciary Committee. And House Speaker Mike Johnson is also due to unveil a bipartisan task force to serve as a nexus point for House investigations.



Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
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Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Denmark's prime minister landed in Greenland on Wednesday for talks with the Danish semi-autonomous territory's incoming government, following US President Donald Trump's repeated expressions of interest in controlling the vast Arctic island.

Mette Frederiksen begins her three-day trip less than a week after a visit to the territory by US Vice President JD Vance received a frosty reception from authorities in Denmark and Greenland.

The Danish leader said ahead of her visit that she aims to strengthen Copenhagen's ties with the island and emphasized the importance of respectful cooperation amid what she described as "great pressure on Greenland".

Frederiksen was expected to speak to the media later on Wednesday.

Greenland's incoming Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, who won last month's parliamentary election and will form a coalition government, has welcomed Frederiksen's trip, saying on Monday that Denmark remains "Greenland's closest partner".

Nielsen's new coalition is expected to formally take office on April 7.

Relations between Greenland and Denmark have been strained after revelations in recent years of historical mistreatment of Greenlanders under colonial rule. However, Trump's interest in controlling Greenland, part of a growing international focus on competition for influence in the Arctic, has prompted Denmark to hasten work to improve ties with the island.

Nielsen told Reuters late on Monday that Greenland would strengthen its ties with Denmark until it could fulfil its ultimate wish to become a sovereign nation.

'RESPECTFUL'

Meanwhile, Greenland wishes to establish a "respectful" relationship with the United States, he said.

"Talking about annexation and talking about acquiring Greenland and not respecting the sovereignty is not respectful. So let's start by being respectful to each other and build up a great partnership on everything," he said.

Frederiksen's visit is primarily about signaling support at a time of intense scrutiny, said Ulrik Pram Gad, an academic at the Danish Institute for International Studies.

"It is important for Denmark to signal to Greenland that Denmark is Greenland's closest friend and ally - and to the US that it stands behind Greenland," he said.

During his visit to a US military base in northern Greenland last Friday, Vance accused Denmark of not doing a good job of keeping the island safe and suggested the United States would better protect the strategically-located territory.

Frederiksen, who has said it is up to the people of Greenland to decide their own future, called Vance's description of Denmark "not fair".

Opinion polls show that a majority of Greenland's 57,000 inhabitants support independence from Denmark, but many oppose seeking independence too quickly, fearing their island could become worse off and expose itself to US interests.