House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) demanded Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle answer whether she was “guessing or lying,” accusing the agency of flipping its story over whether it had denied additional resources to former President Trump.
The Secret Service has denied claims that it rejected requests for additional security at the July 13 rally at which Trump was shot, but the agency later acknowledged that in the past it had rejected such requests.
“So which is it? Because both statements can't be true. Were you guessing or lying when you said you didn't turn down a request from President Trump's detail?” Jordan asked Cheatle.
“Neither,” Cheatle responded. “What I can tell you is that for the event in Butler, there were no requests that were denied,” she added, referring to the Pennsylvania town where Trump’s rally was held.
“Maybe they got tired of asking,” Jordan fired back. “Maybe you turned them down so darn much they said, ‘Not worth asking!’”
Cheatle wouldn’t say how many times Trump’s team had asked for more personnel, but defended the agency’s decision.
“A denial of a request does not equal a vulnerability. There are a number of ways that threats and risks can be mitigated with a number of different assets, whether that be through personnel, whether that be through technology, or other resources,” she said.
But Jordan characterized the Secret Service’s response to those questions as a massive shift.
“What to change from absolutely false unequivocally false to ‘Oh, by the way, there were some times where we didn't give them what they wanted’. That's a huge change in five days. And the fact that you can't answer how many times you did that, that's pretty darn frustrating, not just for me, but for the country,” he said.
