WASHINGTON — Kimberly Cheatle, the Director of the Secret Service, resigned on Tuesday following significant criticism and a tense congressional hearing regarding the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Cheatle acknowledged a major operational failure during the hearing, leading to her resignation.
According to Burkina Information Agency, Cheatle announced her resignation in a heartfelt letter to her staff, stating, “It is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to resign.” The resignation came amidst bipartisan pressure, with numerous calls from both Republican and Democratic officials for her to step down following the incident where Trump was slightly injured.
House Republican leader Mike Johnson responded to the resignation by emphasizing the need for rebuilding trust in the Secret Service. “It’s long overdue, she should have done it at least a week ago,” Johnson stated. He highlighted the necessity to “pick up the pieces and rebuild the American people’s trust in the Secret Service.”
President Joe Biden expressed his gratitude for Cheatle’s decades of service in a statement. “Throughout her career in the Secret Service, she devoted herself tirelessly and risked her life to protect our nation,” Biden said. He also mentioned the ongoing independent investigation aimed at reviewing the events of July 13 and improving security protocols to prevent such incidents in the future.
During Monday’s congressional hearing, Cheatle admitted to the service’s failure in protecting Trump. “The solemn mission of the Secret Service is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13, we failed,” she declared, accepting full responsibility for the breach. Cheatle described the event as “the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades.”
The July 13 attack left Trump with an injury to his ear, and the dramatic images of him bloodied became a global spectacle. The shooter, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was fatally shot by the Secret Service during the incident, which also resulted in one spectator’s death and serious injuries to two others.
In response to the attack and his protection, Trump criticized the Biden administration on his Truth Social platform, stating, “The Biden administration did not properly protect me, and I was forced to take a bullet in the name of democracy.”