After the disastrous Secret Service response to the July 3 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, heads are rolling.
Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle was the first to go. Her initial response to the world when asked about security lapses was to say that the SS did not want to put agents on the roof of the building from which the shooter fired because it was sloped, which caused safety concerns. Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was able to get on top of the farm building with a clear line of sight and no interference from agents or cops.
She resigned in disgrace days after the event.
Now rumors are swirling about why another top Secret Service official is stepping down. Anonymous sources are telling media that Michael Plati is being “encouraged” to retire. Plati is the assistant director of the Secret Service’s Office of Protective Operations, and that division was in charge of planning Trump’s security. He is set to step down from his position on September 13 after 27 years of service.
Not surprisingly, the official line from the Secret Service is different from what anonymous sources have claimed. The agency put out a statement on September 10 saying Plati made a “personal decision” to retire, and that the SS thanks him for nearly three decades of service. But highly placed sources are telling the press that the agency has been pressuring Plati to resign as the agency’s failure has stained its reputation.
Meanwhile, the Secret Service is preparing to be grilled by Congress soon about what happened. Agency testimony will presumably focus on what lessons have been learned by the failure, but questions from elected representatives are likely to be pointed and hostile.
The Secret Service seems to be taking a demure and deferential posture, stating that it “respects the role of oversight.” A spokesman said the division has made employees available for interviews and has given over 2,4000 pages of documents at the request of Congress.
Plati’s resignation, whether prompted by pressure or not, has been known for a month in advance. Some anonymous sources insist he’s leaving because of being squeezed by higher ups, while others deny this.
