Quick Hit:

Senator Josh Hawley reveals that most Secret Service agents assigned to protect former President Donald Trump during a Pennsylvania rally had received only two hours of online training before the event, which witnessed a serious assassination attempt.

Key Details:

• Agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) were deployed with minimal preparation, undergoing just a two-hour webinar instead of comprehensive field training.
• The agents were part of Trump’s security detail at a rally in Butler, PA, where a shooter injured Trump and others, raising concerns over their readiness and qualification.
• New disclosures suggest these hastily trained agents were previously handling child exploitation cases and received outdated webinar instructions that repeatedly failed during their brief training sessions.

Diving Deeper:

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) has called attention to grave concerns regarding the preparedness of Secret Service personnel. During a Fox News interview, Hawley highlighted that the majority of agents protecting former President Donald Trump were “egregiously under-prepared,” having only participated in a rudimentary two-hour online training session.

This revelation comes after a 20-year-old assailant managed to injure Trump and fatally wound a rally attendee on July 13, 2024. The agents, temporarily reassigned from their regular duties in Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), reportedly struggled with the basics of their rapid online training, which was plagued by technical issues and content inadequacies.

Hawley's criticisms were underscored by alarming whistleblower accounts provided to him, detailing the chaotic and ineffective training regimen that involved restarting instructional videos multiple times due to technical difficulties. These sessions used the same content as the previous year, which did not cater to the specific needs of a high-profile protective mission.

The Missouri senator has since penned a letter to Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe, demanding a thorough examination of the training procedures and an explanation for the apparent neglect in adequately preparing those tasked with such critical protective duties. Hawley’s disclosure has ignited further scrutiny of the Secret Service’s operational decisions, especially concerning the use of agents with insufficient training in critical roles. As investigations continue, the need for substantial improvements in security protocols and agent training remains a significant concern, casting doubt on the effectiveness of current practices in safeguarding high-risk individuals.