Donald Trump whisked off stage in Pennsylvania after apparent gunshots rang through the crowd

[Unagi]

They shifted "right" with the winds of DJT. So, I dunno - I just don't feel like reading what they want put into my brain. I'm not saying it's all lies or trash, just that I'd rather read it elsewhere if it's not lies nor trash.

Again, I'll assume it's true.

I'm not in a position to do much about it.

[Pyperkub]

They shifted "right" with the winds of DJT. So, I dunno - I just don't feel like reading what they want put into my brain. I'm not saying it's all lies or trash, just that I'd rather read it elsewhere if it's not lies nor trash.

Again, I'll assume it's true.

I'm not in a position to do much about it.

Yeah, they've posted some pretty bad (as in completely wrong) stuff to be on the RW side of things.

They may be good every once in awhile, but your had better find a corroborating source outside the RW echo chamber which has more critical and in depth reporting before accepting it.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Things are getting spicy at the Secret Service, as reported by RealClearPolitics' National Political Correspondent, Susan Crabtree:

EXCLUSIVE: A Secret Service counter sniper sent an email Monday night to the entire Uniformed Division (not agents) saying he will not stop speaking out until "5 high-level supervisors (1 down) are either fired or removed from their current positions." The counter sniper also said the agency "SHOULD expect another assassination attempt" before November and complained that he is no longer proud to be a USSS counter sniper after leadership failed the officers at the Trump rally in Butler on 7/13.

"This agency NEEDS to change," the sniper wrote in the email. "If not now, WHEN? "The NEXT assassination in 30 days?"

"Sadly we have fallen short for YEARS," the counter sniper lamented. "We just look good doing it. I have conveyed these thoughts to not only supervisors (to include the current Captain of CS, but those responsible for training us (SOTS/CS). Only to be brushed off as those with less experience somehow knew more than me."

"The team I was once proud to be a part of, is something I have to somehow hide as I move into my next career," the counter sniper continued. "Who wants to hire a USSS CS guy who failed? That's the public perception I'm not faced with. The USSS CS team is a stain I will never be able to cleanse."

He concluded with these two lines: "The motto of the USSS...CYA. And every supervisor is doing it right now."

The agency quickly deleted the email, a knowledgeable source told RealClearPolitics.

Full email with name redacted below:

Thank you for the backing and support. I'm not stopping until 5 high level supervisors (1 down) are either fired or removed from their current positions. This agency NEEDS to change, if not now, WHEN? The NEXT assassination attempt in 30 days? Because we all SHOULD expect another attempt to happen before November. We've exposed our inability to protect our leaders due to our leadership. The technicians who worked on 7/13/24 in Butler, PA DID THEIR JOB with their hands tied. Secret Service SUPERVISORS 'knew better' and the foot soldiers working, made the best of a BAD situation that resulted in a civilian death and a near miss of the protectee and our Technician shooting and killing the suspect.

I know many look at the CS team as 'guys who sit on the roof' and don't do much. But our responsibility, our MISSION, is not about protecting an EMPTY White House located 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It's about preventing and stopping another JFK style assassination, in whatever city that may be. Sadly, we have fallen short for YEARS. We just got lucky and looked good doing it. I have conveyed these thoughts to not only supervisors (to include the current Captain) within CS, but those responsible for training us (SOTS/CS). Only to be brushed off as if those with less experience somehow knew more than me.

The team I was once proud to be a part of, is something I have to now somehow hide as I move into my next career. Who wants to hire a USSS CS guy who failed? That's the public perception I'm now faced with. The USSS CS team is a stain I will never be able to cleanse.

Some of us take our job and responsibility seriously, DEADLY serious. I may be overzealous. But after 7 years in the Marine Corps as an NCO and 20+ years on the USSS Counter Sniper team, failure is not an option, and on 7/13/24, WE failed. Not because of commitment or sense of dedication. But because our SUPERVISORS (aka leadership) knew better and thought our concerns were less than important.

The motto of USSS… CYA.

Any every supervisor is doing it right now.

Acting Secret Service Chief Played Key Role in Limiting Resources for Trump

Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe was directly involved in denying additional security resources and personnel, including counter snipers, to former President Trump’s rallies and events – despite repeated requests by the agents assigned to Trump’s detail in the two years leading up to his July 13 attempted assassination, according to several sources familiar with the decision-making.

Rowe succeeded former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who resigned last week after bipartisan calls following her widely panned testimony before the House Oversight Committee. But both Rowe and Cheatle were directly involved in decisions denying requests for more magnetometers, additional agents, and other resources to help screen rallygoers at large, outdoor Trump campaign gatherings.

It was Rowe’s decision alone to deny counter sniper teams to any Trump event outside of driving distance from D.C., these sources asserted.

Rowe and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate are set to appear Tuesday before a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security and Government Affairs committees.

Senators on both sides of the aisle have vowed to press for answers on the assassination attempt of former President Trump that took the life of rally-goer Corey Comperatore and wounded two others. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who chairs the Homeland Security panel, said he plans to grill Rowe and Abbate on the “litany of gaps and failures.”

“There are monumental, critical questions that so far the leadership in these two agencies have failed to answer [for, and] even to begin to respond to,” Blumenthal said.

Sen. Ron Johnson, a senior member of the Homeland Security committee, told RCP he was initially impressed by Rowe’s willingness to answer senators’ questions late last week but pledged to question him closely about the denying of resources to protect Trump.

“I will also hold him fully accountable for being 100% transparent and honest in cooperating with our investigation and oversight,” Johnson said Thursday.

Johnson and other members of the committee are expected to focus on Rowe’s role in the Secret Service’s repeated denials of extra security requested by agents assigned to Trump’s protective detail and about decisions regarding the number of placement of snipers assigned to some of Trump’s events.

Assigning counter snipers based on the ability to drive to an event may sound far-fetched, but knowledgeable sources explained that there’s a limited number of these highly trained Uniform Division officers. It’s easier for counter sniper teams to carry their guns and gear in a van they can all use to transport the teams to the site for advance work for the event and then use the same vehicles, referred to by the Secret Service as “push vehicles,” to return to D.C.

The alternative is for counter sniper teams to board commercial flights or Amtrak (if the event is in the Northeast corridor) with all their gear, find a rental vehicle once on the ground, and then do it all in reverse on the way home. It’s all possible under the “needs of the Service,” one source contends, but in reality, it’s much easier and far more cost-effective for counter snipers to drive to and from a site.

“They can carry their guns and gear on airplanes – there’s an efficient process for that – but it’s going to be much easier, because they have all their gear with them, to drive rather than fly because then they have a push vehicle to take the whole team to and from a hotel to the site each day,” a source in the Secret Service Community told RCP. “They would always rather drive than fly.”

The Secret Service has not responded to several questions from RCP about decisions to deny or limit security resources and personnel, including counter snipers, to Trump’s events.

It's possible that the same individual who wrote the e-mail leaked to Real Clear Politics is now working with U.S. Senator Josh Hawley as a whistleblower:

NEW - Whistleblower tells me Secret Service Acting Director Rowe personally directed cuts to the USSS agents who do threat assessments for events. Whistleblower says those agents were NOT present in Butler - and some of them had warned of security problems for months



---

August 1, 2024

The Honorable Ronald L. Rowe, Jr.
Acting Director

U.S. Secret Service

245 Murray Ln SW, Building T-5
Washington, D.C. 20223

Dear Acting Director Rowe,

Since your testimony before the Senate of July 30, new and disturbing information has come to light about Secret Service planning for the Butler, Pennsylvania Trump campaign event—and your own involvement.

A whistleblower has alleged to my office that the Secret Service Counter Surveillance Division (CSD), the division that performs threat assessment of event sites before the event occurs, did not perform its typical evaluation of the Butler site and was not present on the day. This is significant because CSD’s duties include evaluating potential security threats outside the security perimeter and mitigating those threats during the event. The whistleblower claims that if personnel from CSD had been present at the rally, the gunman would have been handcuffed in the parking lot after being spotted with a rangefinder. You acknowledged in your Senate testimony that the American Glass Research complex should have been included in thie security perimeter for the Butler event. The whistleblower alleges that because CSD was not present in Butler, this manifest shortcoming was never properly flagged or mitigated.

The whistleblower further alleges that you personally directed significant cuts to CSD, up to and including reducing the division’s manpower by twenty percent. You did not mention this in your Senate testimony when asked directly to explain manpower reductions.

The whistleblower also alleges retaliation against those within the Secret Service who expressed concern about the security at President Trump’s events. The whistleblower claims that following an event with the former President at a golf tournament in August of last year, Secret Service personnel present expressed serious concern that the Secret Service's use of local law enforcement was not adequate for security needs: local law enforcement were not properly trained for the event or otherwise prepared to execute the tasks given them. Further, Secret Service personnel expressed alarm that individuals were admitted to the event without vetting. The whistleblower alleges that those who raised such concerns were retaliated against.

Please provide the following information to me by no later than August 8, 2024:

1. All responsive records during your time as Deputy Director in which policy and personnel changes were made to CSD, the Secret Service division that specifically performs advance site threat assessments;
2. The nature of your personal involvement in revising, updating, or otherwise changing Secret Service policies and personnel related to CSD;
3. The number of Secret Service agents who have raised concerns about security practices within the Secret Service and are currently facing disciplinary action, as well as the nature of the concerns and the type of disciplinary action; and
4. The breakdown of Secret Service personnel at the July 13 rally by division or unit.

I await your response.

Sincerely,

Josh Hawley
United States Senator

[LordMortis]

I don't doubt the whistle blower but damn if the only two people worse than Hawley I can think to Whistleblow to are Nunez (no longer relevant) and Geatz. So I guess the only one person I can think worse...

[Unagi]

Well, if they are working with Josh Hawley - maybe I should give them my time.
(sarcasm)
yeah, not the best endorsement.


and yeah - I'm not speaking to 'the whistleblower'.


-basically - what LM said...

[LawBeefaroni]

It is absolutely unconceivable that they would witness someone with a range finder (and a rifle!) and not detain him. He raised big red flags numerous times and they did nothing. They have the authority to detain him, even if open carry is legal. Add in that he was in a standard gun-bro uniform and there were serious problems with how the event was handled. It's looking more and more like it was the USSS who seriously dropped the ball here.

[El Guapo]

I mean, an assassin came really close to killing a major party presidential candidate protected by the Secret Service, so I have to imagine that they screwed up in some significant ways. Obviously that should be looked into and improved. I don't know enough to figure out the specifics of what this guy is saying. I also assume that Hawley is going to want to make this out like the Secret Service denied needed protection because they want Trump to die.

[Unagi]

I mean, an assassin came really close to killing a major party presidential candidate protected by the Secret Service, so I have to imagine that they screwed up in some significant ways.

this

Obviously that should be looked into and improved. I don't know enough to figure out the specifics of what this guy is saying.

this too

I also assume that Hawley is going to want to make this out like the Secret Service denied needed protection because they want Trump to die.

and - yes, exactly this.

[Unagi]

Also, the whistleblower sounds like they may be acting from the desire to not want to have this event stain their career, which is only odd in that professionally speaking it wouldn't because they (the CS) are not being blamed for this at all, so it sounds a little ego driven.

IMO

That's not to say that SUPERVISORS did not 'know better', but the inserted ALL CAP injections also paint a picture as well. IMO

I'm not defending the USSS supervisor. I'm sure they are a failure here.

[LawBeefaroni]

In-depth review and breakdown of the various hearings.

When Congress returned to work after the Republican National Convention, the House held three hearings investigating the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. In this episode, hear for yourself the facts presented by the Director of the Secret Service, the Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner, and the FBI Director during their 15 hours of testimony.

[em2nought]

Secret Service detail Butler, Pennsylvania probably isn't something you want on your resume.

Speaking of whistleblowers, if I was acting director I'd at least temporarily be making all agents wear big orange whistles on big orange lanyards until they can figure out how to communicate better.

[GreenGoo]

In-depth review and breakdown of the various hearings.

In this episode, hear for yourself the facts...during their 15 hours of testimony.

Uh, no.

[waitingtoconnect]

Secret Service detail Butler, Pennsylvania probably isn't something you want on your resume.

Speaking of whistleblowers, if I was acting director I'd at least temporarily be making all agents wear big orange whistles on big orange lanyards until they can figure out how to communicate better.

Im in the corporate world and review projects in trouble. Clearly there is more focus on budget than security and the culture is broken.

I don’t think the whistleblower is trying to save their career- it’s clear the concerns are legitimate and provable.

[gbasden]

Im in the corporate world and review projects in trouble. Clearly there is more focus on budget than security and the culture is broken.

I work a fair amount in cyber security and everything is a budget tradeoff. It rarely matters what the subject is. It always takes a breach before budget takes a back seat.

[Grifman]

We do n’t need a liberal version of QANON:

[Unagi]

huge traction ?

really?

[Kraken]

"among resistance liberals," presumably defined as people who believe in this conspiracy.

[Unagi]

I guess 'Resistance Liberals' is an actual group? - not a description. I've not (*yet) heard of them, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised they exist.

In any event, most of the liberals have plenty of actual battles to fight - so making up nonsense to point at (conspiracies), I don't really think we are at risk of being defined by "them".

But, I've been wrong a lot of late, so - Doom.

[Grifman]

[Anonymous Bosch]

Evidently, a second assassination attempt was made today:

Gunman Arrested After Second Trump Assassination Attempt

Former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt Sunday when a Secret Service agent at his West Palm Beach golf course opened fire on a man armed with an AK-47-style rifle. It is the second attempt on Trump’s life in little more than two months.

As the Republican presidential nominee walked the course, the suspect hid in shrubbery just 300-500 yards away when the Secret Service agent opened fire, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. The suspect carried two backpacks as well as a GoPro camera. His rifle had a scope.

"With a rifle like that with a scope,” the sheriff said at a press conference, “that’s not a long distance.”

Sunday afternoon, the FBI confirmed that they are investigating the incident as an assassination attempt. “The FBI has responded to West Palm Beach Florida and is investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump,” the agency said in a statement.

The Secret Service agent fired four shots, but law enforcement was unsure if the individual fired his rifle. He retreated to a parked car along the road, where, according to Bradshaw, a witness took pictures of both the suspect and the vehicle. The failed assassin was later taken into custody.

The incident took place around 1:30 p.m., according to law enforcement, and the Trump-Vance campaign announced the news shortly thereafter. “President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement. “No further details at this time.”

“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I am safe and well,” Trump wrote in a fundraising email that was sent Sunday afternoon.

Secret Service sources tell RealClearPolitics that the two backpacks the gunman carried and attached to a chain link fence were filled with ceramic tile to shield the shooter from return fire. “Soft body armor like what we wear, and police wear, can only stop pistol rounds,” the source said. "In order to stop rifle rounds, which travel MUCH faster, you need rifle plates like the military wear or SWAT teams wear.”

“I believe that the suspect hanging 2 backpacks on the fence filled with ceramic tile was his attempt to provide himself a somewhat protected firing position,” the source added.

The golf course was partially shut down as Trump played through on Sunday. A Secret Service detail was with the former president and also a couple of holes ahead of him, according to Bradshaw, when an agent spotted a “rifle barrel sticking out of the fence.” The campaign had not made the Republican nominee’s schedule public after a West Coast swing that culminated in Las Vegas the night before, though Trump is known to frequent the golf course.

Trump travels with security as both a former president and a current presidential candidate. After the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, he has received additional resources. “He is not the sitting president,” Bradshaw said. “If he was, we would have this entire golf course surrounded.”

Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance said in a statement Sunday afternoon that he had spoken with Trump before the news was made public and that his running mate “was, amazingly, in good spirits.” The White House was also alerted of the attempt on Trump’s life. An administration spokesman said that both President Biden and Vice President Harris were briefed on the incident shortly after it occurred.

“I have been briefed on reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his property in Florida,” Harris said in a statement posted to social media, “and I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America.”

When Trump and Harris shared a stage at the Philadelphia debate last week, the former president laid the blame for the first assassination attempt at the feet of Democrats.

“I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me. They talk about democracy. I'm a threat to democracy. They're the threat to democracy,” Trump said, “with the fake Russia-Russia-Russia investigation that went nowhere.”

While Bradshaw was quick to praise the agent who engaged with the failed assassin, the Secret Service has been under harsh scrutiny from lawmakers on Capitol Hill since the Pennsylvania shooting and after details of an Iranian plot on Trump’s life came to light. Secret Service leaders have placed several members of the Pittsburgh Field Office on administrative leave since then.

[Unagi]

You are kidding.

Is this a news drop?

Where have ya been?

[Anonymous Bosch]

You are kidding.

Is this a news drop?

Yes.

Where have ya been?

I’ve been in deep contemplation about the meaning of life. Turns out, it’s just a series of snacks and naps.

[LawBeefaroni]

Is this an assassination attempt or a thwarted conspiracy (not legal terms)? He didn't get a shot off and never had a bead on Trump. Secret service did their jobs and identified, chased off, and eventually caught, the suspect.

I know it's a subtle difference but I think it's important.

[Max Peck]

He clearly had a concept of a plan for an attempt.

[GreenGoo]

I’ve been in deep contemplation about the meaning of life. Turns out, it’s just a series of snacks and naps.

I also take issue with the media treating this as an attempt, but I'm not going to argue semantics. It was clearly an armed gunman with bad intent on the property. That's enough.

[Smoove_B]

Story still unfolding from the AP:

Acting Director Ronald Rowe Jr. of the U.S. Secret Service says Routh “did not have a line of sight to the former president” and did not fire at Secret Service agents before he fled the scene.

Also of note:

Routh was charged today with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

Kinda weird that TFG sent out a fund raising email a few hours after this happened yesterday indicating he needed more money because of another attempted assassination. You think he would have been charged with that in court today, but what do I know.

[Blackhawk]

Interesting fact: According to the BBC, Trump wasn't supposed to go golfing Sunday. It wasn't on his schedule. It was a last-minute decision, and forced the Secret Service to put together a plan quickly. If this guy was actually intending to kill Trump, and had been there 12 hours (as has been reported based on his phone location), how did he know where he'd be?

[Isgrimnur]

Occam's razor

[Jaymann]

He does look like he needs a shave.

[Holman]

Interesting fact: According to the BBC, Trump wasn't supposed to go golfing Sunday. It wasn't on his schedule. It was a last-minute decision, and forced the Secret Service to put together a plan quickly. If this guy was actually intending to kill Trump, and had been there 12 hours (as has been reported based on his phone location), how did he know where he'd be?

On the other hand, did the guy know Trump wasn't supposed to go golfing Sunday?

If you live near Mar-a-Lago, you probably know that Trump golfs a lot, and often on Sundays.

I mean, it's not like he's going to go to church.

[Smoove_B]

If you live near Mar-a-Lago, you probably know that Trump golfs a lot, and often on Sundays.

I mean, it's not like he's going to go to church.

For sure - it's a solid bet you're going to find him on *a* golf course - especially on a Sunday and knowing he's not campaigning. The question is how did this guy know which golf course to go to and was so confident it was happening that he sat there for *12 hours* prior to TFG's arrival?

[milo]

It's Florida. There's a gunman at every golf course there most days.

[Blackhawk]

Occam's razor

A handy tool most of the time, but I wasn't offering explanations - just noticing and sharing an oddity. I don't generally offer serious explanations until I have more facts.

[RunningMn9]

If you live near Mar-a-Lago, you probably know that Trump golfs a lot, and often on Sundays.

Doesn’t this lunatic not live in FL?

[El Guapo]

Story still unfolding from the AP:

Acting Director Ronald Rowe Jr. of the U.S. Secret Service says Routh “did not have a line of sight to the former president” and did not fire at Secret Service agents before he fled the scene.

Also of note:

Routh was charged today with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

Kinda weird that TFG sent out a fund raising email a few hours after this happened yesterday indicating he needed more money because of another attempted assassination. You think he would have been charged with that in court today, but what do I know.

In terms of the court filing, they need to charge him with something fairly quickly in order to not release him (can you imagine the shitstorm if they released him?). The firearms charges are probably what what readily provable. Since he wasn't in the act of attacking Trump when caught, proving that requires more than one day of investigating. But it's highly probable that there will be a superseding indictment with more charges later.

Could still turn out that this guy was there to like hunt something, but at this point occam's razor is that he was there to take a shot at Trump.

[Holman]

If you live near Mar-a-Lago, you probably know that Trump golfs a lot, and often on Sundays.

Doesn’t this lunatic not live in FL?

I just saw that he has been a Hawaii resident. The question is how long he has been in Florida. If he's been hanging around a while, then guessing that Trump will probably be playing at his favorite Trump-owned golf course on Sunday is no big stretch. And I imagine locals learn to read the secret-service/motorcade presence and know when Trump is in town.

Now if the gunman flew in from Hawaii two days before, that's a different story. But we haven't heard anything like that.

[LordMortis]

If you live near Mar-a-Lago, you probably know that Trump golfs a lot, and often on Sundays.

Doesn’t this lunatic not live in FL?

I just saw that he has been a Hawaii resident. The question is how long he has been in Florida. If he's been hanging around a while, then guessing that Trump will probably be playing at his favorite Trump-owned golf course on Sunday is no big stretch. And I imagine locals learn to read the secret-service/motorcade presence and know when Trump is in town.

Now if the gunman flew in from Hawaii two days before, that's a different story. But we haven't heard anything like that.

I had read early reports that he was Hawaii resident TFG supporter turned Tulsi supporter turned Ukraine advocate. I want to say I read it in Variety but they were very early reports so I didn't hold any stock in it while waiting for more info. So it could have been a more trashy source that I read along with other early reporting. If all holds true, (that's a big if) my guess is he's a 2a supporter who felt betrayed by TFG's Russian ties against Ukraine. I suppose it may be possible we eventually find out there was nothing he could do about TFG's stance on Ukraine and being buddies with Putin's propaganda. I dunno.

[Smoove_B]

My local news is reporting some weirdness:

Records show Routh, 58, lived in North Carolina for most of his life before moving in 2018 to Kaaawa, Hawaii, where he and his son operated a company building sheds, according to an archived version of the webpage for the business.

...

Voter records show he registered as an unaffiliated voter in North Carolina in 2012, most recently voting in person during the state’s Democratic primary in March.

So he was a resident of Hawaii, but voted in NC in March having been previously registered there in 2012?

Federal campaign finance records show Routh made 19 small political donations totaling $140 since 2019 using his Hawaii address to ActBlue, a political action committee that supports Democratic candidates.

Records show that while living in Greensboro, North Carolina, Routh had multiple run-ins with law enforcement. He was convicted in 2002 of possessing a weapon of mass destruction, according to online North Carolina Department of Adult Correction records.

Seems like we're missing some time in this timeline. Overall, it sounds like maybe he was one of those "Never Trumper" Republicans I hear so much about.

[GreenGoo]

Please explain the gaps in your resume.

[Max Peck]

From the reporting I've seen, he was for Trump before he was against him.