The Secret Service is the agency charged with protecting the president, former president, and others. So what the heck happened to security that resulted in the near assassination and the killing of an attendee at the July 13 Butler, Pennsylvania rally?  It is difficult to sort out facts at this early stage, but here is what is out there.  The potential assassin (shooter) was using an AR-15 rifle, which usually has an effective range of about 400 to 600 yards, depending on the ammunition used and rifle configuration. AR stands for Armalite Corporation, the original manufacturer, and does not stand for “assault rifle.” The shooter was on a roof approximately 164 yards from the former president’s podium, well within the range of a typical owner of such a rifle, as can be seen by the near-fatal headshot grazing the former president’s ear.

The Secret Service did not secure the roof from which the shooter fired. This location, which was so close to the former president and left unsecured, was a huge Secret Service failure. The first excuse for not securing this roof was that the roof was too steep. Several congressional members walked on the roof without difficulty. Since that did not work, the next excuse was that local law enforcement was supposed to secure the roof but failed to do so even though the Secret Service was responsible for the overall safety of the former president. After all the excuses had been exhausted, it was admitted that the fact that the shooter was not detected on the roof 164 yards from the former president was a colossal Secret Service mission failure.

The Wall Street Journal first reported that the shooter used a drone to scope out the rally area before the assassination attempt. There is some controversy whether the FAA had restricted drone flights in the rally area before the event. The only available details of the drone were that DJI, a Chinese company, manufactured it. If a drone is equipped with Standard Remote ID (SRID), which is now required on drones, the FAA can track the drone. It is uncertain why more details of the drone have not been released. DJI also keeps flight records of its drone flights. The federal government owns many drone systems for air-to-ground surveillance. The Secret Service did not avail itself of typical drone technology to observe the terrain around the rally area, which was another security failure.

When an incident like this occurs, the Secret Service bodyguards are supposed to physically cover the protected person and then remove the person from the area after the threat has been reduced. The former president is a tall person, and at least one of the bodyguards was too short to cover the former president.  

Videos taken by attendees of the rally show the shooter getting on the roof of the building, which was reported immediately to law enforcement. It is not clear why the Secret Service allowed the former president to enter the podium with this possible threat developing. Other reports state that the Trump staff requested additional Secret Service protection, but were denied.  

The FBI director suggested that the former president may have been hit by shrapnel and not a bullet. A New York Times reporter photographed the bullet passing by the former president’s head. This was definitely a bullet and not shrapnel. Shrapnel is typically characterized by an irregular shape, usually resulting from an explosive or impact event and accompanied by other pieces of shrapnel. The FBI has backed off from this statement.

The discussions go on and on, illustrating problems with transparency amongst the affected government agencies. Gas-lighting (lying with a straight face) is endemic vis-a-vis “the roof was too steep.” It is likely that much more information exists on the events related to the assassination attempt but is not being disclosed. Government agencies claim to be transparent but often block information to cover their butts, an aversion to any accountability when they screw up.

There is some information relating to the Kennedy assassination in 1963 that has still not been disclosed. The FBI is investigating the Trump assassination attempt. FBI credibility has been diminished based on the Durham report showing an improper investigation of the now-debunked Russian collusion theory and comments suggesting that shrapnel caused the injury to the former president. A congressional investigation may be more independent, but subpoenas to federal agencies for more information often go unanswered. Full disclosure of the facts involved in this matter may not appear during our lifetime, and there is no guarantee that our descendants will learn about the truth either.