Members of the Bipartisan Assassination Task Force, including Rep. Mike Waltz and Rep. Madeleine Dean, are probing the assassination attempt on former President Trump by Thomas Matthew Crooks. The investigation is focused on the failures of the U.S. Secret Service during the July rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Crooks fired bullets from a rooftop. While the USSS has taken full responsibility for their failures and cooperated with the investigation, Waltz expressed frustration at the lack of cooperation from the FBI, who has not been forthcoming with their investigation over two months after the attempt.
FBI Director Christopher Wray initially raised questions about whether the object that struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet or shrapnel. However, two days later, the FBI confirmed that it was indeed a bullet, fired from the rifle of the deceased subject. Waltz criticized the lack of information available about Crooks, the shooter, including details about his encrypted accounts and how he learned to build IEDs. Senator Ron Johnson also expressed concern about heavily redacted documents provided by the FBI to lawmakers.
The shooting at the Trump rally in July has led to increased scrutiny of the U.S. Secret Service and raised questions about the safety of elected officials in the current hyper-partisan climate. There is bipartisan frustration with the FBI over their lack of transparency regarding the assassination attempt on Trump, as well as Iran’s plots to kill him and hack information from the Trump campaign. Waltz has called for a press conference from FBI Director Wray and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas to provide more information.
The task force is considering investigating a second apparent assassination attempt against Trump at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Rep. Dean emphasized that political violence has no place in the country and condemned all forms of it. The ongoing investigation into the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, aims to uncover the failures of the U.S. Secret Service and hold responsible agencies like the FBI accountable for their lack of cooperation with the task force. Lawmakers are frustrated with the lack of information and redactions in documents provided by the FBI regarding the July rally shooting and other threats against Trump.
