Kimberly Cheatle was the first woman to lead the US Secret Service. But the failures that led to an attack on Donald Trump on July 13 cut short her remarkable career.
The official submitted her resignation on Tuesday, a day after facing harsh criticism from Republican and Democratic lawmakers who called for her resignation following a six-hour hearing in the House of Representatives.
During questioning, Cheatle, 53, defended the officers’ work, but also acknowledged that the attack was “the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades”.
On July 13, Trump was holding a campaign rally for the White House in Pennsylvania when a man, Thomas Matthew Crook20, fired a rifle from a nearby rooftop.
A bullet grazed Trump’s right ear, causing a non-life-threatening wound. The burst of gunfire left one person dead and two others injured in the crowd.
In a letter in which he submitted his resignation, Cheatle said he assumed “full responsibility for the security breach” and that he chose to step down to avoid distracting the Secret Service.
Three decades of service
President Joe Biden has tapped Cheatle to lead the Secret Service — which oversees the protection of current and former presidents — in September 2022.
Cheatle came to office with a track record of 27 years in the agency performing various functions.
During his time as an agent, Cheatle participated in an operation after the September 11, 2001 attacks to protect then-Vice President Dick Cheney in the White House, as many feared he was in danger.
Cheatle later became supervisor of Biden’s protection team during his time as vice presidentShe then became the agency’s deputy assistant director for protective operations.
The former official also had a brief stint in the private sector working for PepsiCo before being named director of the Secret Service in 2022.
The president highlighted his career in a statement on Tuesday.
“He has selflessly dedicated and risked his life to protect our nation throughout his career with the United States Secret Service. We are especially grateful to him for answering the call to lead the Secret Service during our administration and are grateful for the service he has provided to our family,” Biden said.
“It takes honor, courage and incredible integrity to assume full responsibility for an organization charged with one of the most difficult jobs in public service,” he added.
Tough appearance
Cheatle testified for nearly six hours in a tough hearing of the House Oversight Committee on Monday.
Lawmakers expressed frustration when she refused to answer questions about the shooting at Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.
Cheatle took responsibility for the failures security chief, but rejected calls for his resignation. He called what happened “the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades.”
Witnesses reported seeing a suspicious man – Thomas Matthew Crooks – with a rifle on a roof near the rally site minutes before the shots were fired.
Crooks was shot dead by a sniper shortly afterward. At the hearing, Cheatle offered no new information about how Crooks gained access to the roof from which he carried out the attack.
A bullet grazed the former president’s ear, and he appeared several times at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee the following week wearing a bandage.
“The Biden/Harris Administration failed to adequately protect me and I was forced to take a bullet for democracy,” Trump posted on his social media platform in response to the news of Cheatle’s resignation.
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