According to the Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump’s would-be assassin was able to capture aerial footage via drone of the western Pennsylvania fairgrounds shortly before the former president was set to speak there. This revelation points to another stunning failure by law enforcement.
“Thomas Matthew Crooks flew the drone on a programmed flight path earlier in the day on July 13 to scour the Butler Farm Show grounds ahead of Trump’s ill-fated rally, the officials said. The predetermined path, the officials added, suggests Crooks flew the drone more than once as he researched and scoped out the event site,” WSJ’s Sadie Gurman and Aruna Viswanatha write.
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“The use of the drone was just one way in which authorities have said Crooks planned his attack. Crooks, described by friends as very smart yet withdrawn, began researching the site shortly after the Trump campaign announced the rally on July 3, and registered for the event on July 7, officials said. He visited the farm show grounds a few days later to scope it out,”
Here’s more reporting on the matter from Fox News:
Thomas Matthews Crooks, the gunman who tried to k*ll Donald Trump was able to fly a drone and get aerial footage of the western Pennsylvania fairgrounds shortly before President Trump was set to speak there.
He flew the drone on a programmed flight path earlier in the day on… pic.twitter.com/BTYmcnYrlS
— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) July 19, 2024
This new information adds to the mystery of why certain security measures were not taken to assure the safety of all rally attendees, including the President. It appears we might be getting answers next week.
After receiving a subpoena from the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-KY), U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has agreed to testify before the committee on Monday concerning the recent attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
“Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle will testify before the House Committee on Oversight on Monday,” said Secret Service Chief of Communications, Anthony Guglielmi, on Friday. “The Secret Service is fully accountable for the safety of its protectees. We are committed to better understanding what happened before, during, and after the assassination attempt of former President Trump to ensure it never happens again. That includes complete cooperation with Congress, the FBI, and other relevant investigations.”
The decision follows public demand for transparency regarding the circumstances that allowed for a security lapse during the July 13 shooting.
“Americans demand accountability and transparency about the Secret Service’s failures that led to the attempted assassination of President Trump, but they aren’t getting that from President Biden’s Department of Homeland Security,” Comer said in a statement two days ago when announcing the subpoena.
The testimony of Director Cheatle is expected to address key questions about the Secret Service’s operations and the specific failures that potentially facilitated the attempt on Trump’s life. Lawmakers are likely to probe into the details of the security protocols in place at the time of the incident, as well as the subsequent measures the agency has taken to ensure such a breach does not occur again.
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