Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), the lead Republican on the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, is asking for a copy of the security plan and details of security measures at the rally where Donald Trump was shot.
Johnson made the request in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, and FBI Director Christopher Wray regarding the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
You can read the letter below.
The Honorable Merrick Garland Attorney General
Department of Justice
The Honorable Alejandro Mayorkas Secretary
Department of Homeland Security
The Honorable Christopher Wray Director
Federal Bureau of Investigation
July 14, 2024
Dear Attorney General Garland, Secretary Mayorkas, and Director Wray:
On July 13, 2024 our nation experienced a tragedy—the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump during an outdoor campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.1 According to reports, the would-be assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was armed with a rifle and was able to position himself on a roof “less than 150 meters (164 yards)” from the stage where former President Trump was speaking.2 From there, the suspected gunman apparently fired at the former president, wounding him. Two spectators at the rally were critically injured and, sadly, one person was killed.3 According to a Secret Service statement, after the gunman fired “multiple shots . . . from an elevated position outside of the rally venue[,] U.S. Secret Service personnel neutralized the shooter, who is now deceased.”4
While there is still much more information that has yet to be uncovered and shared with the public, the American people deserve a full explanation and complete transparency about this failure of security. Accordingly, I request that your agencies preserve all records5 referring or
1 Michael Biesecker and Lanna Durkin Richer, What we know about the 20-year-old suspect in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, AP, July 13, 2024, https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/20-year-suspect- apparent-assassination-attempt-donald-trump-111926657; Authorities Search for Motive After Trump Assassination Attempt, Wall Street Journal, July 14, 2024, https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/trump-rally-incident.
2 Id.
3 Id.
4 Statement, United States Secret Service, Secret Service Statements Regarding Violence at the July 13, 2024, Trump Campaign Rally, (July 13, 2024), https://www.secretservice.gov/newsroom/releases/2024/07/secret-service- statements-regarding-violence-july-13-2024-trump-campaign (from statement made July 13, 2024 at 9:00 p.m.).
5 “Records” include any written, recorded, or graphic material of any kind, including letters, memoranda, reports, notes, electronic data (emails, email attachments, and any other electronically-created or stored information), calendar entries, inter-office communications, meeting minutes, phone/voice mail or recordings/records of verbal communications, and drafts (whether or not they resulted in final documents).
July 14, 2024 Page 2
relating to the protective detail of former President Trump, including the protective detail at the Butler campaign rally on July 13, 2024, any threats made against the former president, and how federal law enforcement addressed or will address those threats. In addition, please provide the following information:
- A copy of the security plan in place for the July 13, 2024 rally.
- Provide all records between and among the Secret Service, FBI, state, and local law enforcement referring or relating to the July 13, 2024 rally.
- A detailed description of the security measures in place for the July 13, 2024 rally, including, but not limited to:
- The size of the security perimeter established, and how that perimeter size was selected;
- The total number of Secret Service personnel involved in the security preparations for the July 13, 2024 rally, including the total number on-site during the rally;
- The total number of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) personnel involved inthe security preparations for the July 13, 2024 rally, including the total numberon-site during the rally;
- The total number of state and local law enforcement involved in the securitypreparations for the July 13, 2024 rally, including the total number on-site duringthe rally;
- A detailed list of the special operations division units, including the total numberof personnel from each unit, deployed for the rally, such as the Counter AssaultTeam or the Counter Sniper Team;
- A complete list of all federal, state, or local entities that had access to, orparticipated in the creation of the security plan for the July 13, 2024 rally;
- A complete list of all federal agencies, state, and local law enforcement thatprovided agents, or other personnel, to provide security, or other logisticalresources, for the July 13, 2024 rally;
- A detailed list of any countermeasure equipment deployed at the rally, includingbut not limited to unmanned aerial drones; and
- A description of the screening procedures used for individuals entering thesecurity perimeter established for the rally.
- Did the Secret Service receive requests for additional security protection for former President Trump? If so, when were those requests made, by whom, and were those requests granted or denied? Please provide all records referring or relating to requests for additional security protection for former President Trump from November 15, 2022 (when he announced his candidacy for the 2024 election) to the present.6
- Was the Secret Service or FBI aware of any threats or other information concerning a potential security threat to former President Trump and the July 13, 2024 rally?
6 Gabby Orr et al., Former President Donald Trump announces a White House bid for 2024, CNN, Nov. 16, 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/15/politics/trump-2024-presidential-bid/index.html.
July 14, 2024 Page 3
- A detailed timeline of former President Trump’s movements during the July 13, 2024 rally, including but not limited to when former President Trump arrived at the event, when he walked on stage, when shots were fired, when Secret Service agents initially rushed the stage, when Secret Service agents escorted former President Trump off the stage, and when former President Trump was evacuated from the venue following the assassination attempt.
- According to reports, at least one rally attendee attempted to alert police to the presence of an individual on a building roof with a rifle “five to seven minutes” into former President Trump’s speech.7 Was Secret Service or the FBI made aware of this warning? If so, when did the Secret Service or FBI first become aware of this warning?
- Has the Secret Service or FBI interviewed rally attendees who reportedly attempted to alert police to the presence of the shooter?
- Has the Secret Service or FBI identified and interviewed the police who reportedly received the alert about the presence of the shooter? If so, please provide the names and associated law enforcement agency for each of these individuals.
- When and how did the Secret Service become aware of the suspected gunman?
- Did the suspected gunman evade Secret Service detection until the moment heopened fire? If so, why was the area in which the suspected gunman was locatednot closely monitored or secured?
- Was the building, including its roof, in which the suspected gunman was locatedswept by Secret Service or other law enforcement prior to the rally?
- When did the suspected gunman arrive to the rally site in Butler, PA? When andhow did he go to the roof of the building where he apparently took position?
- Provide all official electronic communications, including but not limited to text messages, between and among Secret Service, FBI, and other law enforcement agents from July 11, 2024 to July 14, 2024 referring or relating to the Butler, PA event.
- All details associated with the would-be assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks, including but not limited to:
- Whether Crooks was on any watch list or if the FBI, Secret Service, or local law enforcement was otherwise aware of him prior to July 13, 2024;
- Any FBI file or other document associated with Crooks;
- The ATF Form 4473 associated with the suspected gunman’s weapon(s).
- A list of social media accounts associated with Crooks;
- Whether Crooks had ever communicated to anyone about assassinating formerPresident Trump; and if so, when and to whom;
- How, when, and where Crooks obtained any firearms used in the attemptedassassination of former President Trump; and
- Whether Crooks had any criminal history or history of mental health issues.
7 Kipp Jones, ‘He Had a Rifle!’ Trump Rally Attendee Frantically Warned police Gunman Was Crawling on Roof, Mediaite, July 13, 2024, https://www.mediaite.com/news/he-had-a-rifle-trump-rally-attendee-says-he-warned- police-gunman-was-crawling-on-roof/.
July 14, 2024 Page 4
- The number and type of weapons and bullets recovered, including the number of bullets fired by the suspected gunman during the rally. Have all the bullets fired by the suspected gunman been recovered?
- Provide all firearm tracing requests connected to the July 13, 2024 assassination attempt.
- In addition to weapons and bullets, what other items were discovered by law enforcement after the shooter was neutralized, including but not limited to electronic devices?
- Reports indicate that the “suspected shooter had explosive devices in his car” which was parked near the rally.8a. When did law enforcement locate the suspected shooter’s car? Where was it parked? How long had it been parked in that location?b. Was the car parked in an area that was swept by Secret Service or other law enforcement prior to the rally?c. Describe the type and amount of “explosive devices” that were apparently found in the suspected shooter’s car.d. In addition to the “explosive devices,” what other items were discovered in the car, including but not limited to electronic devices?
- All records referring or relating to any briefing provided to President Biden, Secretary Mayorkas, or Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle regarding the attempted assassination of former President Trump at the July 13, 2024 rally.
- Does the FBI and Secret Service believe that Crooks acted alone?Thank you for your attention to this important matter. Please confirm the preservation of
records and provide the requested information as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Ron Johnson
Ranking Member
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
8 Saide Gurman, Suspected Shooter Had Explosive Devices in His Car, Sources Say, Wall Street Journal, July 14, 2024, https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/trump-rally-incident/card/suspected-shooter-had-explosive-devices-in-his- car-sources-say-nqpDI2AqQQNtSvYtEpS9.
July 14, 2024 Page 5
cc: The Honorable Richard Blumenthal Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
Ms. Kimberly Cheatle Director
United State Secret Service
The Honorable Joseph Cuffari Inspector General
Department of Homeland Security
The Honorable Michael Horowitz Inspector General
Department of Justice
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Might be a good time to relieve the Secret Service from investigating credit card fraud and counter-fitting duties and concentrate on executive protective duties only.
The little phony weasel is in no position to quote demand a side order of fries ? and Pepsi cola, the real house speaker is Jim Jordan who will very soon in AUG, as the vast majority of all in Congress call for a on the record vote of NO confidence, can him like a tuna, same as the last stool pigeon
Demand an independent investigation team. Not any federal agency- an independent team of security experts with full access to evidence, witnesses, social media, inter-agency email and digital correspondence, etc.
Get to the bottom of this NOW. No foot-dragging, no months of agency road-blocking of information. FULL DISCLOSURE. Incarcerate people who refuse to cooperate.
The more we learn, the more nefarious it appears to have been.
The police in Pennsylvania did their jobs well. A tiny fraction of a minute permitted the shooter to gain access to his perch where he immediately began firing. There was and is no Secret Service conspiracy. There likely was a conspiracy involving the shooter, but we may never know that truth. This is a case where something very bad almost happened but didn’t. The shooter was eliminated and my dear friend Donald Trump walked away. I say Perfecto!! Miracles are real.
Innocent blood was shed in Pennsylvania as the USA political process plays out. Innocent people were shot when a young man tried to kill a presidential candidate, and at least one is dead. The fact that innocent blood was spilled places this case in a very special place next to God. Believe me when I say – innocent blood is sacred, and the punishments will be severe for those who disregard the teaching.
“Sen. Johnson demands explanation from US intel agencies re: Trump assassination attempt”
Per Occam’s Razor, the simplest explanation is usually correct — and in this case, it’s that Fake President Joetard’s Secret Service and FBI follow cues or direct orders to either not go out of their way to protect Trump, OR were directly involved in an assassination attempt, but like Fake President Joetard, were just too incompetent to get the job done.
If heads of the federal bureaucracy weren’t already gonna roll if Trump got elected, you can BET that they’re gonna roll now, WHEN — not if — he gets elected. For that reason, the thugs and gangsters of the Intelligence Community are more dangerous now than before they failed to protect Trump OR conspired to assassinate him.