In the aftermath of a harrowing assassination attempt on President Donald Trump during a July 2024 rally in Pennsylvania, six Secret Service agents have been suspended without pay or benefits.
Matt Quinn, the agency’s deputy director, spoke candidly to CBS News on Wednesday, saying, “We weren’t going to fire our way out of this,” but stressed that the Secret Service is “laser focused on addressing the root cause of the problem.”
The six agents received disciplinary penalties ranging from 10 to 42 days of unpaid leave. Upon their return, they were reassigned to restricted roles with limited responsibilities, in accordance with federally mandated procedures.
The incident occurred on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania, when gunman Thomas Crooks opened fire toward the stage during Trump’s rally. The breach of security sparked intense criticism of the Secret Service’s preparedness.
Tragically, 50-year-old firefighter, father, and husband Corey Comperatore was killed. President Trump was grazed by a bullet, and two other individuals were injured before Crooks was fatally shot by a Secret Service sniper.
Quinn took full responsibility for the agency’s failures that day. “The Butler incident represented an operational failure,” he told CBS News. “We are committed to ensuring that such an incident does not happen again.” He also emphasized the agency’s ongoing efforts to identify and correct the “deficiencies that led to that situation.”
Since the attack, the Secret Service has bolstered its capabilities by deploying military-grade drones and new mobile command posts to improve radio communications with local law enforcement, according to Fox News.
However, the agency’s troubles didn’t end there. Weeks later, a second assassination attempt on Trump was thwarted in West Palm Beach, Florida. The fallout led to the resignation of then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and sparked multiple investigations and congressional hearings.
In December, a bipartisan House task force released a comprehensive 180-page report branding the Butler attack as “preventable.” The report highlighted longstanding leadership and training gaps within the agency, along with a lack of effective coordination with local law enforcement.
Last week, Trump publicly addressed the government’s investigation into the Pennsylvania attack. When asked by reporters on Friday, he stated he was “very satisfied” with the FBI’s work.
This marked a significant shift, as Trump had previously expressed reservations about fully endorsing the FBI’s handling of the case. In a prior Fox News interview, he admitted, “I’m relying on my people to inform me about it … The Secret Service, they assure me, is fine. However, it’s somewhat difficult to accept.”
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino clarified in March that there was no evidence of a larger conspiracy against Trump. “In some of these instances, the ‘there’ you are searching for simply does not exist,” he said. “I understand the concerns — I get it. But it’s not there. If it were, we would have informed you.”
When pressed about Trump’s stance on Bongino’s statement, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt replied, “Well, in the context of your question, you have already answered it with the president’s own words.”
Adding another layer to the political landscape, Bongino announced in May that the FBI had launched investigations into several high-profile public corruption cases that had been overlooked during the Biden administration.