Watch: Trump assassination hearing devolves into screaming match over 9/11 service
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The acting Secret Service director and a Republican representative got into a prolonged shouting match about a 9/11 memorial service at a Thursday hearing about the assassination attempts on President-elect Trump.
Driving the news: The hearing devolved when Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas) accused acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe of standing too close to President Biden at a 9/11 remembrance event as an attempt to win the top Secret Service position.
- "Do not invoke 9/11 for political purposes," yelled Rowe, who responded to Ground Zero in 2001.
- "Don't try and bully me," Fallon responded.
- The explosive exchange came during an hours long hearing where Rowe described how the Secret Service has heightened its protective measures in the face of increased political violence after two assassination attempts against Trump.
Context: Fallon asked Rowe who normally stands closest to the sitting president, spotlighting a photo where Rowe is visible near Biden.
- Rowe said the special agent in charge of the detail, who would hold that post, was in Biden's vicinity but off camera.
Catch up quick: Rowe, previously the deputy director of the U.S. Secret Service, was appointed as the agency's acting director after his predecessor Kimberly Cheatle resigned days after the first assassination attempt on Trump.
State of play: The hearing was the second and final public hearing by a bipartisan task force that will release a final report on its findings.
- Its October interim report said the assassination attempt "clearly shows a lack of planning and coordination between the Secret Service and its law enforcement partners before the rally" on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Go deeper: What to know about acting Secret Service director Ronald Rowe
