Audio By Carbonatix
The director of the Secret Service is stepping down from her job, according to an email she sent to staff.
This follows the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump that unleashed intensifying outcry about how the agency tasked with protecting current and former presidents could fail in its core mission.
Kimberly Cheatle, who had served as Secret Service director since August 2022, had been facing growing calls to resign and several investigations into how the shooter was able to get so close to the Republican presidential nominee at an outdoor campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
“I take full responsibility for the security lapse,” she said in the email to staff Tuesday. “In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director.”
Cheatle’s resignation comes a day after appeared before a congressional committee and was berated by hours by both Democrats and Republicans for the security failures. She called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades and said she takes fully responsibility for the security lapses, but angered lawmakers by failing to answer specific questions about the investigation.
The 20-year-old shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was able to get within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage where the former president was speaking when he opened fire. That’s despite a threat on Trump’s life from Iran leading to additional security for the former president in the days before the July 13 rally.
Latest Stories
-
NDC threatens sanctions over oversized campaign posters, gives aspirants 5 days to comply
52 minutes -
Star Oil paid GH¢2.7bn in taxes, levies in nine months of 2026
1 hour -
Samson’s Take: The rule of law is cheaper before the bulldozer
1 hour -
GRA blames system failure for delay in issuing receipt over passenger’s customs duty
1 hour -
Livestream: Newsfile discusses World Cup visa scandal, beach demolitions, education strikes, BRICS bid
2 hours -
NC-PTAs welcomes end of teachers’ strike, urges parents to prepare children for Monday
2 hours -
Government procures over 2,000 transformers as Ghana’s electricity access hits 89.13% – Energy Minister
2 hours -
UTAG-UG threatens strike on October 19 over unpaid allowance
2 hours -
Let The Constitution direct Chieftaincy to deliver “All Development Is Local”   Â
3 hours -
John Jinapor outlines renewable energy, nuclear power priorities for 2027
4 hours -
Ghana explores centre of excellence for hearing, communication and cochlear implant care
5 hours -
Schizophrenia-related disorders lead mental health cases recorded in Ghana
5 hours -
Dutch authorities enlist Ghana in hunt for fugitive drug lord Bolle Jos
6 hours -
Ghana housing finance conference adopts communiqué to improve affordable housing access
10 hours -
Special Initiatives Minister urges Wa Technical Institute to enrol more girls as EU-backed solar training lab opens
10 hours