Newly obtained video shows local police officers in Pennsylvania cursed the Secret Service for failing to heed their warnings in the immediate aftermath of last month's attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
The Wall Street Journal obtained footage from Butler Township police body cameras showing an officer saying, “I f—ing told them that they needed to post guys f—ing over here…I told them that f—ing Tuesday. I talked to the Secret Service guys. They’re like, ‘Yeah, no problem. We’re going to post guys over here.’”
Thomas Crooks, 20, positioned himself on the roof of a warehouse overlooking the venue where Trump was speaking – outside the perimeter the Secret Service secured — and opened fire in Trump's direction with an AR-15-style rifle immediately after police noticed his presence.
Trump escaped with an ear injury.
Since then, questions have swirled over the Secret Service's response and why the area where Crooks gained access wasn't more closely monitored — something that, according to the video, also frustrated local police.
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“I thought you guys were on the roof. I thought it was you. I thought it was you,” another officer said to another after arriving at the warehouse. “What the f—? Why were we not on the roof? Why weren’t we?”
According to reports, the Secret Service believed that Butler Township responders would secure that area. However, the local team "didn’t want the snipers on the roof because they would have been exposed to temperatures over 90 degrees throughout the day," the Journal reported, citing a local law enforcement official involved in the event planning. Additionally, the sloped roof would have "obscured" some of the sniper's vantage points.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned amid outrage over the incident. Investigations remain ongoing.
Watch the footage at the link here.
