Second House panel plans hearing on Trump assassination attempt with top FBI, DHS officials
House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) has invited top officials from the FBI, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Secret Service to testify in a hearing next week about the attempted assassination of former President Trump, the committee said Tuesday.
FBI Director Christopher Wray, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, and Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle were invited by Green this week to testify for the planned July 23 hearing.
That hearing would come one day after a scheduled House Oversight Committee hearing with Cheatle on July 22.
“The American people want answers on what happened Saturday in Pennsylvania. Secretary Mayorkas and Director Cheatle are responsible for the department and the agency charged with securing our homeland and protecting our nation’s chief executives and candidates, while Director Wray leads the agency with the vital responsibility of investigating this attempted assassination,” Green said in a statement.
“It is imperative that we partner to understand what went wrong, and how Congress can work with the departments and agencies to ensure this never happens again,” Green said. “Successful oversight requires Congress to work together with these officials as they testify publicly before the House Committee on Homeland Security. The American people, and the individuals and families who receive protective services, deserve nothing less.”
Asked about whether Cheatle would testify, the Secret Service referred The Hill to DHS, which told The Hill that it “responds to congressional requests directly via official channels, and the Department will continue to respond appropriately to Congressional oversight.” The FBI said it received the invitation and had no further comment.
Green over the weekend sent a letter to Mayorkas requesting documents and communications about the security plans for Saturday’s Trump rally, including those relating to any potential increase of security resources for Trump, referencing reports that the department had “rebuffed” requests for additional security for Trump.
A Secret Service spokesperson on Sunday had disputed those reports as “untrue” and “absolutely false,” and said that the Secret Service had added resources and protective capabilities as Trump increased his campaigning.
Green has also spoken privately with Cheatle and FBI Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells, a committee spokesperson previously told The Hill.
The FBI told Green and House Homeland Security Committee ranking member Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) that the FBI has conducted nearly 100 interviews so far and has access to the gunman’s phone.
Green received assurances about transparency in the investigation, and hopes to schedule a site visit once the scene is processed, the spokesperson said.
The suspected shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot and killed by Secret Service agents moments after he opened fire. Trump said in a statement that a bullet had “pierced” his right ear. One rally attendee died, and two others were critically injured.
In a statement Monday, Cheatle said that the Secret Service will “work with the appropriate Congressional committees on any oversight action.”
Green’s panel is one of six Congressional committees across both the House and Senate already involved in assessing and investigating the security lapses that led to the attack.
Updated: 5:05 p.m. ET
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