The Secret Service has come under heavy scrutiny since the attempted assassination on Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13.
It is hard to deny that it’s not underserved criticism, either. At the end of the day, a shooter accessed an open rooftop around 400ft away from the former president – it’s a miracle, if not divine intervention, that he lived to tell the tale.
Naturally, the Secret Service’s failures that day sparked a wider investigation into the agency. Prominent conservative lawyer Mike Davis has been pursuing this intently and is currently campaigning for lawmakers to scrap a bill which would remove Trump’s protection should he be imprisoned.
On social media, Davis highlighted how a 2022 visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky required “beefed up” Secret Service protection, with D.C. officials reportedly treating it as a “mini-state visit.” However, requests by the Trump campaign for further security have repeatedly been denied due to a “lack of resources.”
Many on social media were critical of the previous decisions by Government officials.
Others highlighted additional examples where Secret Service resources were perhaps questionably prioritized.
For one user, the news only presented more questions than answers.
The fact is that state visits by world leaders are carefully choreographed events where access to them by deranged would-be assassins is usually extremely restricted. A former president, on the other hand, has a more flexible schedule and requires constant protection in case someone takes issue with a previous policy enactment. There is also an argument that American politicians should be prioritized by American security.
The list of questions is only growing.
