U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned Tuesday amid widespread outrage over her agency’s failure to prevent the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally earlier this month.

Cheatle’s resignation, which was first reported by NBC News citing sources, came a day after she was blasted by members of a House committee at a hearing on the Secret Service’s actions leading up to Trump’s July 13 rally in Butler Township.

Cheatle rejected calls at that hearing to resign, saying she was the best-qualified person to head the Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting the president, vice president, their family members and leading presidential candidates.

The director angered members of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee by refusing to answer many questions about the Secret Service’s actions surrounding Trump’s rally, where the Republican presidential nominee narrowly avoided being killed by 20-year-old gunman Thomas Crooks. One man died in the shooting, while two others were critically injured.

On Tuesday, Cheatle in a letter wrote to Secret Service staff, “In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that, I have made the difficult decision to step down as your Director.”

“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders and financial infrastructure. On July 13th, we fell short on that mission,” said Cheatle, who served in the agency for nearly 30 years.

“The scrutiny over the last week has been intense and will continue to remain as our operational tempo increases,” she wrote. “As your Director, I take full responsibility for the security lapse.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/23/secret-service-resigns-trump-shooting.html