Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s appearance before the House Oversight Committee on Monday to answer questions about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump was a disaster.
The irony of course is without the gun (?phallic) love of the 2nd Amendment fanatics (??where are the well-regulated armed militias?) and corrupt Alito-Thomas court, AR15s etc would not be available. Perhaps the GOP should look at their role in the weaponizing of America.
That's a great point. It's amazing that the SS has done as well as it has in providing protection when guns are everywhere, especially including AR-15s in the hands of youths and the mentally ill. And the S.Ct. justices then complain about inadequate security to protect against the menace that they've encouraged.
Notice the personal insurance liability. Now, we have personal liability insurance that covers our family in Germany up to 10 mil € each, but that might have cost us more if we had guns. Ours was not that expensive. It is normally held by most people in Germany too. In fact, part of the high standard of living in Germany is afforded by people being insured for almost everything from work stress, to scratching a neighbors car with your bike. And there is insurance for lawyers. So, people are less likely to fall through the cracks because of catastrophic life events, although, people better make sure they have flood insurance as the continent warms up. I just feel that if his parents needed to pay for insurance, and their rates went up because their son had a gun, they might not have approved it. He would not have been able to get a gun at his age without psychological testing. I doubt he would have been approved.
Thanx as always. I would suggest the assassination still be referred to as “alleged,” since we have no medical records or ballistics documentation tying Crooks’ weapon to Donald’s ear.
That alleged shot was perfect for Trump, both physically and politically. That’s amazing, if it happened, and sure, it may have.
But they gotta prove it as best they are able.
Because without a doubt: we are dealing with a world-class huckster/psychopath. So, every unproven fact T/his Crew spew must be challenged at this time, until proven to a reasonable degree.
Otherwise, if journalists/all of us let T skate on shaky facts/presumptions now, we will all have no shot at doing so if he ascends to reigning King in January 2025.
There are so many questions that they would fill a book which I'm sure somebody's already writing... Okay #1 - as I've posted elsewhere, with my props theater background I know that fake blood (!) can easily be made by combining Carmine and a glycerin, can be put into a little capsule for instance which for instance could be taped behind your ear somewhere and this guy's got big ears. Notice the sudden hard slap and quick drop to the ground, rehearsed? About the shooter, anAR-15 which this young man has practiced on for years I guess even though he didn't make the gun club but then his personality might have been in the way, is quite accurate, uses a scope. He might have been prepared to commit what we call suicide by cop, which you'll notice 'happened' after his shot even though secret service shooters were already in place, now claiming they couldn't see him, Even though they got their shot off within a few seconds. Probably BS. With Magas not caring in reality about other people and regular Repubs sometimes not far behind, this guy's shots took out three people with one dead. Have we had any reports of those three at all? Then there's the SS allowing him to stick his head up and do all that show off stuff which looked very programmed to me so were they the extras following orders secretly? Way too many questions.
Excellent points! Nothing about this incident makes any sense to me...Vast negligence, incompetence, or maybe the trump team letting this happen or even wanting this for the boost for their obscene convention? With no actual photos of the wound and no verified medical report who knows what the truth is.
How can anyone or any agency be expected to be able to guarantee the safety of anyone when there are 100 million more guns than people in this country? The U.S. Army would have a job defending against that many weapons thousands of them now modified for machine gun firing ! That thanks to our Supreme Court and its 6 justices who probably own stock in the armaments industry! I’ll be anticipating the NRA issuing a statement saying well if everyone of Trump’s avid supporters in that crowd was armed the shooter would not have had a chance! Even George Orwells 1984 didn’t get as bizzare as the world we are living in today!
All valid points. What is left unsaid is the fact there is ample evidence the SS has also over the years become much too politicized in terms of the allegiances and poliitcal "beliefs" of many of its number. The trail of evidence laid out post 1/6 as to how many of the agents were, in effect, members of the Trump campaign team was quietly shoved under the rug when the control of Congress was turned over to the Republicans in 2022.
Law and Order works both ways. For an agency which has long stood for protecting the President to now being populated by careerists and quite possibly politicized leadership also deserves investigating. Failure to protect "the perimeter" is only one problem. An enemy within it is another.
Question: Has it been proven that a "shot" (bullet?) actually "grazed" Trump? I'm no ballistics expert, but in the absence of any verifiable medical or forensic report, some of those who are have expressed skepticism.
The rest of this column stands, of course, whether Trump was grazed by a bullet or hit by glass fragments. The Secret Service failure is appalling, and, as others have noted, Cheatle has resigned.
We have become a country of scapegoats, where as long as you can blame someone your sins are forgiven. She referred to the times we live in where guns are ubiquitous, which I personally feel is the real issue. How can the secret service be held to such a high standard where anyone can get a gun, and the venues for the rally's are often difficult to secure? If the secret service would deny Trump the ability to hold a rally where ever they can draw a crowd, they would be accused of denying him his first amendment rights. Maybe there comes a time where the first amendment and second amendments cannot co-exist?
I really appreciate your knowledge of firearms and all things military, Lucian. Weighing in as a geospatial scientist, it is really straightforward to do a “viewshed analysis” that identifies all of the sites visible from, say the podium (and vice-versa of course). Now I’m terrified for Vice President Harris’ safety in a world where high powered weaponry is freely available and stochastic terrorism is a reality.
How true ! Kamala’s candidacy is going to bring the cream of the racist crop out in force! The security around her and the entirety of her family,her saffers ,and Joe is going to have to be quadrupled unfortunately! Is that even possible?
They probably did the viewshed analysis as SOP, but did not have enough people to cover it? The Secret Service has been a cluster for decades now, maybe the best thing they’ve done is not let the Cantaloupe Criminal go to the capital on Jan 6 (although if they had let him go there would be no possible legal question about his intention, not that there actually is a question in any sane person’s mind, we all saw it on TV)
And there are always copycats out there! The day before the shooting, I asked a friend who I thought was knowledgeable about such things, how far away or close do you have to be to be able to shoot someone. It was just a question as I wondered about all these big outdoor venues for Drumpf rallies. But I thought surely the SS covered all the bases, roofs, etc. If a SS sniper could shoot the guy so quickly, they obviously saw him. So why wait until he shot at the Drumpf?
We have a perfect system for murder and death designed by people who have no concerns except for themselves. The federal and state laws are toothless. Perfect.
Lucian, this is a great column. As someone who has crassly uttered politically incorrect statements on the attempted assassination, I needed this article to bring me around to rational thinking. The attempted assassination was awful and there is no excuse for the head of the Secret Service to be contemptuous, obstructive, and defensive. This was a terrible breach -- and she should be held accountable.
Spy Talk Substack writer Jeff Stein also said Director Cheatle should resign on the day it was announced, and lacking that Biden should fire her. We know she is a Jill Biden connection, but time for that is over. I
I presume SS agents are supposed to use their bodies to shield the person they're protecting. They're supposed to be tall enough to block a shot, they're supposed to keep the subject down and out of the line of fire. The agents looked confused and did not perform according to what I assume is protocol. I would be embarrassed to be on that detail.
"The only federal agency with no margin for error," yes - even after the December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor debacle the United States Navy was winning crucial battles six months later!
In the longer version of your post, you suggest possibly assigning the National Guard as a supplement until the secret service could have adequate numbers. I would like to indulge in something that's not exactly a conspiracy thought but maybe realistic. In the National Guard units, would not be all that unlikely that there's a right-wing nut with a gun? I suppose if a single member of a unit tried to raise his gun and shoot the candidate or the president, maybe his companions could stop the person. I don't know for sure that I want to rely on that. Does anybody think this is too far out to imagine? Remember Indira Gandhi!
Well, surely do NOT ask the local sheriff department to do back up for the Secret Service. When I called the local sheriff's office here in Michigan on January 4, 2021, to report that my crazy gun toting Trumper neighbor was swearing at me that Biden kills babies and he was going to Washington to stop him from being president, the deputy's response was "Why?" They were all trumpers, too. (They did send a deputy aftrr I insisted he was dangerous and to get his license plate number for the state police.)
The irony of course is without the gun (?phallic) love of the 2nd Amendment fanatics (??where are the well-regulated armed militias?) and corrupt Alito-Thomas court, AR15s etc would not be available. Perhaps the GOP should look at their role in the weaponizing of America.
That's a great point. It's amazing that the SS has done as well as it has in providing protection when guns are everywhere, especially including AR-15s in the hands of youths and the mentally ill. And the S.Ct. justices then complain about inadequate security to protect against the menace that they've encouraged.
It is appalling how easily guns are available to these disturbed youth in the US. In Germany the rules are listed here. https://www.dw.com/en/where-does-germany-stand-on-gun-control/a-52450664
Notice the personal insurance liability. Now, we have personal liability insurance that covers our family in Germany up to 10 mil € each, but that might have cost us more if we had guns. Ours was not that expensive. It is normally held by most people in Germany too. In fact, part of the high standard of living in Germany is afforded by people being insured for almost everything from work stress, to scratching a neighbors car with your bike. And there is insurance for lawyers. So, people are less likely to fall through the cracks because of catastrophic life events, although, people better make sure they have flood insurance as the continent warms up. I just feel that if his parents needed to pay for insurance, and their rates went up because their son had a gun, they might not have approved it. He would not have been able to get a gun at his age without psychological testing. I doubt he would have been approved.
Thanx as always. I would suggest the assassination still be referred to as “alleged,” since we have no medical records or ballistics documentation tying Crooks’ weapon to Donald’s ear.
That alleged shot was perfect for Trump, both physically and politically. That’s amazing, if it happened, and sure, it may have.
But they gotta prove it as best they are able.
Because without a doubt: we are dealing with a world-class huckster/psychopath. So, every unproven fact T/his Crew spew must be challenged at this time, until proven to a reasonable degree.
Otherwise, if journalists/all of us let T skate on shaky facts/presumptions now, we will all have no shot at doing so if he ascends to reigning King in January 2025.
I'm wondering the same thing. IMO it's fair to call the event an "apparent assassination attempt." We don't even know what the shooter's motives were.
Motive can be ephemeral; physical evidence is solid.
I haven't seen the evidence that a bullet struck Trump, or even heard a persuasive argument. If you've got physical evidence, please share.
Maybe he was aiming for the fireman....to carry the conspiracy theory thread.
There are so many questions that they would fill a book which I'm sure somebody's already writing... Okay #1 - as I've posted elsewhere, with my props theater background I know that fake blood (!) can easily be made by combining Carmine and a glycerin, can be put into a little capsule for instance which for instance could be taped behind your ear somewhere and this guy's got big ears. Notice the sudden hard slap and quick drop to the ground, rehearsed? About the shooter, anAR-15 which this young man has practiced on for years I guess even though he didn't make the gun club but then his personality might have been in the way, is quite accurate, uses a scope. He might have been prepared to commit what we call suicide by cop, which you'll notice 'happened' after his shot even though secret service shooters were already in place, now claiming they couldn't see him, Even though they got their shot off within a few seconds. Probably BS. With Magas not caring in reality about other people and regular Repubs sometimes not far behind, this guy's shots took out three people with one dead. Have we had any reports of those three at all? Then there's the SS allowing him to stick his head up and do all that show off stuff which looked very programmed to me so were they the extras following orders secretly? Way too many questions.
Excellent points! Nothing about this incident makes any sense to me...Vast negligence, incompetence, or maybe the trump team letting this happen or even wanting this for the boost for their obscene convention? With no actual photos of the wound and no verified medical report who knows what the truth is.
She's just resigned.
How can anyone or any agency be expected to be able to guarantee the safety of anyone when there are 100 million more guns than people in this country? The U.S. Army would have a job defending against that many weapons thousands of them now modified for machine gun firing ! That thanks to our Supreme Court and its 6 justices who probably own stock in the armaments industry! I’ll be anticipating the NRA issuing a statement saying well if everyone of Trump’s avid supporters in that crowd was armed the shooter would not have had a chance! Even George Orwells 1984 didn’t get as bizzare as the world we are living in today!
We are in the Twilight Zone...Even Rod Serling couldn't believe this...
You are right there!!
All valid points. What is left unsaid is the fact there is ample evidence the SS has also over the years become much too politicized in terms of the allegiances and poliitcal "beliefs" of many of its number. The trail of evidence laid out post 1/6 as to how many of the agents were, in effect, members of the Trump campaign team was quietly shoved under the rug when the control of Congress was turned over to the Republicans in 2022.
Law and Order works both ways. For an agency which has long stood for protecting the President to now being populated by careerists and quite possibly politicized leadership also deserves investigating. Failure to protect "the perimeter" is only one problem. An enemy within it is another.
They didn't do such a great job for Obama, either!!!
Question: Has it been proven that a "shot" (bullet?) actually "grazed" Trump? I'm no ballistics expert, but in the absence of any verifiable medical or forensic report, some of those who are have expressed skepticism.
The rest of this column stands, of course, whether Trump was grazed by a bullet or hit by glass fragments. The Secret Service failure is appalling, and, as others have noted, Cheatle has resigned.
Did they even find the bullet, casing or whatever the term is?? I know from nothing about guns, except I hate them!
We have become a country of scapegoats, where as long as you can blame someone your sins are forgiven. She referred to the times we live in where guns are ubiquitous, which I personally feel is the real issue. How can the secret service be held to such a high standard where anyone can get a gun, and the venues for the rally's are often difficult to secure? If the secret service would deny Trump the ability to hold a rally where ever they can draw a crowd, they would be accused of denying him his first amendment rights. Maybe there comes a time where the first amendment and second amendments cannot co-exist?
🏆
I really appreciate your knowledge of firearms and all things military, Lucian. Weighing in as a geospatial scientist, it is really straightforward to do a “viewshed analysis” that identifies all of the sites visible from, say the podium (and vice-versa of course). Now I’m terrified for Vice President Harris’ safety in a world where high powered weaponry is freely available and stochastic terrorism is a reality.
How true ! Kamala’s candidacy is going to bring the cream of the racist crop out in force! The security around her and the entirety of her family,her saffers ,and Joe is going to have to be quadrupled unfortunately! Is that even possible?
They probably did the viewshed analysis as SOP, but did not have enough people to cover it? The Secret Service has been a cluster for decades now, maybe the best thing they’ve done is not let the Cantaloupe Criminal go to the capital on Jan 6 (although if they had let him go there would be no possible legal question about his intention, not that there actually is a question in any sane person’s mind, we all saw it on TV)
And there are always copycats out there! The day before the shooting, I asked a friend who I thought was knowledgeable about such things, how far away or close do you have to be to be able to shoot someone. It was just a question as I wondered about all these big outdoor venues for Drumpf rallies. But I thought surely the SS covered all the bases, roofs, etc. If a SS sniper could shoot the guy so quickly, they obviously saw him. So why wait until he shot at the Drumpf?
She resigned.
We have a perfect system for murder and death designed by people who have no concerns except for themselves. The federal and state laws are toothless. Perfect.
Accountability is critical. It was a debacle.
Lucian, this is a great column. As someone who has crassly uttered politically incorrect statements on the attempted assassination, I needed this article to bring me around to rational thinking. The attempted assassination was awful and there is no excuse for the head of the Secret Service to be contemptuous, obstructive, and defensive. This was a terrible breach -- and she should be held accountable.
Trump naturally summons up such contempt we have to be careful we don't "lose it"!
I totally agree and am ashamed at my awful thoughts and comments relating to the attempted assassination of The Bloated Yam.
Herr Gropenfuehrer cannot accept such a fake apology, be warned!
Spy Talk Substack writer Jeff Stein also said Director Cheatle should resign on the day it was announced, and lacking that Biden should fire her. We know she is a Jill Biden connection, but time for that is over. I
I presume SS agents are supposed to use their bodies to shield the person they're protecting. They're supposed to be tall enough to block a shot, they're supposed to keep the subject down and out of the line of fire. The agents looked confused and did not perform according to what I assume is protocol. I would be embarrassed to be on that detail.
"The only federal agency with no margin for error," yes - even after the December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor debacle the United States Navy was winning crucial battles six months later!
In the longer version of your post, you suggest possibly assigning the National Guard as a supplement until the secret service could have adequate numbers. I would like to indulge in something that's not exactly a conspiracy thought but maybe realistic. In the National Guard units, would not be all that unlikely that there's a right-wing nut with a gun? I suppose if a single member of a unit tried to raise his gun and shoot the candidate or the president, maybe his companions could stop the person. I don't know for sure that I want to rely on that. Does anybody think this is too far out to imagine? Remember Indira Gandhi!
Well, surely do NOT ask the local sheriff department to do back up for the Secret Service. When I called the local sheriff's office here in Michigan on January 4, 2021, to report that my crazy gun toting Trumper neighbor was swearing at me that Biden kills babies and he was going to Washington to stop him from being president, the deputy's response was "Why?" They were all trumpers, too. (They did send a deputy aftrr I insisted he was dangerous and to get his license plate number for the state police.)
And Anwar Sadat