‘Cascade Of Preventable Failures’ Contributed To Trump Assassination Attempt: Senate Report

Authored by Jacob Burg via The Epoch Times,

The Senate released a report on July 13 detailing the critical missteps that allowed a gunman to climb a building and open fire on President Donald Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024, and faulted the Secret Service for its discipline and “pattern of denials, mismanagement, and missed warning signs.”

The report, released by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, investigated the events leading up to and after July 13, 2024, when a 20-year-old gunman climbed onto the roof of the American Glass Research building during a Trump campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show and opened fire on Trump, who was running for president at the time.

The man fired eight shots and struck four people, including Trump.

One of the rallygoers—Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief—died while shielding his family from the bullets. Two others were injured but survived.

“This was not a single error,” the report states. “It was a cascade of preventable failures that nearly cost President Trump his life.”

The report culminated from a yearlong bipartisan investigation that conducted 17 transcribed interviews with Secret Service personnel and reviewed more than 75,000 pages of documents from federal, state, and local law enforcement entities.

The Secret Service’s “disturbing pattern of communication failures and negligence” was faulted for the shooting, according to the report.

For example, the failed assassin was able to evade detection by Secret Service personnel for 45 minutes, despite civilians reporting his presence on the building rooftop to Secret Service 25 minutes before he fired any shots.

The Secret Service was also faulted for denying multiple requests for additional staff, assets, and resources to protect Trump during his campaign.

The agency did not fire anyone involved in the planning and execution of the Butler rally, the report states, highlighting that only six personnel were formally disciplined, and as recently as this month.

The report criticizes former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle for falsely telling Congress that no asset requests had been denied for the Butler rally by the Secret Service. It also faults the agency for giving agents in advance roles “ill-defined responsibilities.”

Agents failed to communicate critical information about the shooter to Trump’s shift detail, who could have stopped the presidential candidate from stepping onto the stage, according to the report.

There was also a “severe lack of coordination and communication” between agents and state and local law enforcement throughout the event and during its planning, the report states.

“The United States Secret Service failed to act on credible intelligence, failed to coordinate with local law enforcement, and failed to prevent an attack that nearly took the life of a then-former president,” Paul said in a statement.

“Despite those failures, no one has been fired. And we only know what little discipline was handed out because I issued a subpoena. That’s unacceptable. This was not a single lapse in judgment. It was a complete breakdown of security at every level—fueled by bureaucratic indifference, a lack of clear protocols, and a shocking refusal to act on direct threats.”

Paul said the Senate must hold the Secret Service accountable and ensure that reforms are fully implemented so that the events of July 13, 2024, do not happen again.

The Secret Service is tasked with protecting both current and former presidents and their families, as well as visiting foreign leaders, some other senior officials, and leading candidates in presidential elections.

In a statement to The Epoch Times, current Secret Service Director Sean Curran said the agency has seen the report and will continue “working cooperatively with the committee as [the agency moves] forward with [its] mission.”

“Following the events of July 13, the Secret Service took a serious look at our operations and implemented substantive reforms to address the failures that occurred that day,” Curran said.

“The Secret Service appreciates the continued support of President Trump, Congress, and our federal and local partners who have been instrumental in providing crucial resources needed to support the agency’s efforts.”

The agency also referred to its one-year update on the July 13, 2024, Trump assassination attempt. Released last week, the update includes a list of recommendations from Congress, reforms the Secret Service has implemented in response, and a summary of the disciplinary actions taken.