A year after Trump rally shooting, Secret Service enacts major reforms
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President Trump is surrounded by Secret Service agents following an assassination attempt during a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. Photo: Joe Appel/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Nearly a year on from the assassination attempt on President Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, the U.S. Secret Service announced major reforms designed to ensure "a tragedy like this can never happen again."
The big picture: The USSS noted in a report Thursday that "breakdowns in communication, technological issues, and human failure, among other contributing factors" led to the events of July 13, 2024, which left Trump with an injured ear, a Butler, Penn., rally-goer dead and two others injured.
- The Secret Service was criticized by both parties over the shooting and a bipartisan congressional task force report found the incident was preventable.
- The USSS acknowledged in its report there was "an operational failure that the Secret Service will carry as a reminder of the critical importance of its zero-fail mission and the need for continuous improvement."
What they did: The Secret Service has over the past year acted on recommendations and "implemented numerous operational, policy and organizational reforms," according to its report.
- The agency suspended six U.S. Secret Service agents in relation to their conduct concerning the assassination attempt.
- It has implemented 21 of the 46 recommendations currently made by congressional oversight bodies in the wake of the shooting, 16 others are in progress and "nine are addressed to non- Secret Service stakeholders," the USSS said.
Zoom in: The Secret Service has created an Aviation and Airspace Security division "dedicated to maintaining the agency's critical aerial monitoring capabilities" and modified the agency's resourcing process "in order to ensure that assets are better accounted for and appropriately applied," per the report.
- At the top of a table outlining the reforms is the recommendation that the Secret Service should "improve coordination and specify responsibilities among federal, state and local law enforcement partners."
- The agency notes that in response to this the Secret Service has moved to revise the Protective Operations Manual, updated both protective operations policies to "clarify staffing requirements and operational coordination expectations" and protective operations policies "to further clarify roles and responsibilities for the completion of successful visits."
What they're saying: Secret Service director Sean Curran said in a statement that he has kept July 13 at the top of his mind and the agency "has taken many steps to ensure such an event can never be repeated in the future."
What we're watching: The report notes that the reforms made over the past year "are just the beginning" and the agency "will continue to assess its operations, review recommendations and make additional changes as needed."
Flashback: Secret Service director resigns after Trump assassination attempt
