Physically unfit, under-qualified agents with a diversity-obsessed boss chosen by Dr Jill Biden! After Secret Service botched the Trump shooting
By: Andrew Neil (Mail Online)
There's your fucking DEI
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
It was a grey, drizzly Monday on March 30, 1981, when President Reagan emerged from the Washington Hilton hotel, heading back to his presidential limousine parked a few yards away.
His inauguration had been only a few weeks before and he'd just finished speaking at a lunch of US labor union leaders.
Along with the rest of the White House press corps I was about 20 feet away, roped off from the President. Suddenly, just as one of our number shouted a question for him, shots rang out.
In a split second, a burly Secret Service agent brusquely bundled Reagan into the limo, another pushed his colleague hard to ensure both he and the President were flat on the back seat.
The limo was surrounded by agents, guns drawn, the would-be assassin wrestled to the ground by the public as well as law enforcement. Reagan's vehicle sped off.
Along with the rest of the White House press corps Andrew Neil was about 20 feet away, roped off from the President. Suddenly, just as one of our number shouted a question for him, shots rang out.
In a split second, a burly Secret Service agent brusquely bundled Reagan into the limo, another pushed his colleague hard to ensure both he and the President were flat on the back seat.
Within four minutes it was at George Washington Hospital, even though, not initially realizing the President had been hit (a bullet had entered his rib cage), the Secret Service had at first started out for the White House.
Reagan was close to death on arrival. But he survived, thanks in no small part to the speedy response of the Secret Service, which thwarted the shooter.
Now consider what happened when Donald Trump was shot on Saturday night.
The initial response was by the book. Brave agents piled on him to protect him from further bullets. They kept him down until they were told the shooter had been killed.
But they had no idea if others shooters were involved and, as they escorted him off the podium, they left him badly exposed, partly because some of the agents were not tall enough to give him proper cover.
If there had been a second shooter they would have had a clear line of sight as Trump fist-pumped the air.
There was even more chaos by the time they reached Trump's SUV. Far from the efficient, speedy exit all those years ago outside the Washington Hilton, it took too long to get him in the vehicle and even longer for it to depart.
Agents were darting about, some running in circles, clearly not sure what to do. One, overweight and looking panicked, pointed her gun all over the place. Another had trouble holstering her pistol. A third found time to put on her sunglasses and straighten her jacket.
Perhaps it was just a coincidence - but when Trump entered the Republican National Convention hall in Milwaukee on Monday night, his security detail was made up almost exclusively of tall, chunky men.
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The Secret Service endlessly game-plans and practises evacuations. 'Get him and go' is the simple guidance. The Secret Service likes to regard itself as the global gold standard for the protection of public figures. Not after Saturday night.
But what happened after Trump was shot is the least of its problems.
How the shooter ever managed to get any shots off in the first place has the makings of the biggest crisis of modern times for the Secret Service.
Security experts are still baffled that a roof top overlooking the presidential podium, just over a football-field away and with an elevated, unobstructed view of Trump, could have been left unguarded so that the shooter could make it on to the roof and then, unhindered, position himself for his assassination attempt.
The Secret Service has yet to offer a credible explanation for this. Instead its director, Kimberly Cheatle, incredibly appeared to tell ACB News on Tuesday that health and safety protocol was to blame.
'That building in particular has a sloped roof at its highest point. And so, you know, there's a safety factor that would be considered there that we wouldn't want to put somebody up on a sloped roof,' she said.
The Secret Service has yet to offer a credible explanation for this. Instead its director, Kimberly Cheatle (pictured), incredibly appeared to tell ACB News on Tuesday that health and safety protocol was to blame.
Cheatle and her acolytes have also been busy throwing local law enforcement under the bus.
The warehouse on top of which the shooter clambered (we still don't know exactly how) was outside the Secret Service's perimeter of responsibility, she claims. It was the job of local police to secure it — and it's true that local law enforcement has some questions to answer.
It's been revealed that a local police counter-sniper team was stationed inside the warehouse. They were using it as a 'watch post' to scan for threats.
Pity nobody thought of having a look at the roof of the building they were occupying since its location and view overlooking the rally made it the most obvious threat. Perhaps the Keystone Cops were on duty at the weekend.
Local police also failed to react to people on the ground around the warehouse shouting that there was somebody, possibly with a rifle, on the roof, a few minutes before he started firing. Several videos provide convincing evidence to confirm this — and of the police's lackadaisical response.
'Look, they're all pointing,' one man is heard saying as he pans his smart phone from the stage to the roof of the warehouse, where a figure is seen crawling. 'Yeah someone's on top of the roof — look!'
The police don't seem to react, though there are reports that one local cop climbed a ladder leaning against the warehouse wall (used by the shooter?). He saw the would-be assassin when his head reached roof level — and quickly ducked back down the ladder when the shooter trained his AR-15 on him, before he then turned back unimpeded to take his shots at Trump.
Another report extraordinarily claims that local police noticed the shooter on the roof 26 minutes before he opened fire, and even took a picture of him.
Clearly, the police incompetence on depressing display during the Uvalde school massacre shooting in Texas two years ago was not a one-off.
But the Secret Service cannot be allowed to pile the blame on a police force in rural Pennsylvania with no expertise or experience in protecting high-profile targets.
It is the job of the Secret Service to devise and give final approval for the security blueprint covering events like Saturday's rally. It is the responsibility of the Secret Service to ensure all vulnerable points are covered, inside and outside their specific perimeter, even when local police provide the manpower.
Agents were darting about, some running in circles, clearly not sure what to do. One, overweight and looking panicked, pointed her gun all over the place. Another had trouble holstering her pistol. A third found time to put on her sunglasses and straighten her jacket.
The standards and governance of the Secret Service are clearly less rigorous than they once were. The attempted assassination of Donald Trump at the weekend has made that painfully obvious for all to see.
Above all, it was incumbent on the Secret Service to ensure that such an obvious security weakness as the warehouse was properly policed. One drone with infrared sensors would quickly have spotted the shooter, probably before he even made it to the roof. If that drone had been equipped with offensive capabilities, the shooter could have been taken out long before he ever managed to pull his trigger.
But we understand no drones were deployed. Why not?
It would seem the Secret Service under Director Cheatle has had other priorities. A former Secret Service agent told me privately that she quit because field agents were understaffed (working 60 consecutive days with no time off).
Money has instead been diverted to DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). Investment in new technology, including state-of-the-art drones, was also sacrificed at the altar of DEI.
Director Cheatle was appointed two years ago by President Biden with the blessing (perhaps even active support) of his wife Jill.
Cheatle had been on the Biden family's security detail when Joe Biden was Vice President. Jill Biden is obsessed with DEI, like most leftwing pseudo-academics. Cheatle talks more about reaching 30 percent female agents by 2030 than she does about protecting those under her agency's tender care. Her ambition is all over the Secret Service website.
When I was a White House correspondent in the 1980s, the Secret Service was part of the US Treasury Department, a hard taskmaster.
Now it is part of Homeland Security, whose boss, the hapless Alejandro Mayorkas, is also 'passionate' about DEI. He also assures us the Southern border with Mexico is secure.
The standards and governance of the Secret Service are clearly less rigorous than they once were. The attempted assassination of Donald Trump at the weekend has made that painfully obvious for all to see.
No doubt its shortcomings will be revealed in agonizing detail by the numerous congressional committees about to investigate it. I'd be surprised if Cheatle survives the scrutiny.
She could always return to be head of 'global security' at PepsiCo, from whence she came. They're big on DEI there too — but the consequences are less profound for American democracy.
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Before anyone gets pissy, I had to shorten the title as it was too long for the fetch feature.
Check those boxes and get a prestigious job............even if you aren't qualified. I'm sure there are plenty of perfectly healthy veterans that would like to serve this way.
The Biden Admin methodology for bringing people in.
Yup..................
Very good article Jim.
So it's Jill Biden's fault?
Not really just pointing out that she was the one that pushed for the director. Another DEI hire
And nepotism.
She was totally unqualified to run the Secret Service.
No, the SHOOTER is responsible for HIS actions.
The Secret Service did a POOR job of securing the location and protecting the person they were supposed to be protecting.
Of course, when people are hired for a responsible position based on DEI and not actual qualifications, fuck ups like this monumental one are made more likely.
Well, can't say I'm an expert on this sort of thing but the whole thing looked bizarre from hour one. The more you see and hear of it, it's almost what you would expect to see if someone wanted to create a reality TV show called "Who wants to be a Secret Service Agent?", then picked a bunch of contestants at random, given them a scenario and then instruct them to act the way they think real SS agents would act. It looks a lot like that. Even the reaction of the spectators looked odd, as if they knew they were watching a show. I mean, something like that would account more believably for explaining all of what happened than these guys being real, trained SS agents.
Just seems weird that the Secret Service wouldn't have secured the area better, especially locations with a direct sight line to Trump.
Yeah, hence my comment. It just seems like the more you hear, the more it seems like these guys were just playing at being SS agents. Or, hate to say it, like they were trying to give someone an opportunity to take Trump out, it was that screwed up. This is going to be really hard for someone to explain.
The spin coming out of D.C. should be a real hoot!
Bet if it was a private security company providing the service, heads would roll and every supervisor on site would be fired for gross negligence or a lack of acceptable judgment.
Yeah. I suspect the highest priority in releasing information might be how it will affect the Democratic position. Of course, had this whole thing been reversed, that is, Biden was in Trump's shoes and Trump was the president, I'd expect the same thing would be true of them. That might be cynical, but I lost faith in our government a long time ago. It seems to just represent special interests, not the 98% of Americans who just want to have a BBQ and a beer on the weekends.
Can't disagree with that.
A worker from Sheets on Evins City Road took his break and walked down to the Farm Show to,
like everyone else, see if he could catch a glimpse of Trump. He told reporters that as Trump approached the stage, all of the local police and police auxiliary turned towards Trump to applaud his arrival.
The guy from Sheets told the police that someone just went up the roof with a rifle
and while they started to panic and run around the shooting started.
Sheets are basically convenience stores usually with gas pumps and have great sandwiches.
The SS were relying on those people for crowd control.
My intuition tells me that the sandwiches will play a significant role in determining just how this all came about!!!
Now it turns out that there was a swat team "inside the adjacent building".
Possibly causing a bit of complacency among the officers outside?
How many were eating sandwiches, lol?
Law enforcement, including the Secret Service, have always been overly enamored of Trump.
It does make me wonder just how public the after action review will be.
The rooftop where they did perch the sniper team was also sloped. One really has to wonder about the competency of the team as now they claim they were only responsible for the area within the fairgrounds and this building was just outside so it was the responsibility of local police?
I said on the day of, that while I don't know if anybody will be fired over the failure here (even though they should be) I do expect there to be some reassignments to less desirable locations for some agents.
Even if it were under local police, the SS was in charge. A personal video has been shared online in the last couple of days showing 86 seconds from when the first civilian yelled "He's got a gun" until the shots rang out... someone should definitely be reassigned to scraping dog shit off sidewalks in Phoenix, while their supervisor should be dusting off a resume. There are several levels of failure here before one gets to Cheatle.
True but she’s the boss, responsible for all those levels
It happened on her watch. Ultimately it’s on her.
I agree. Not a fan of taking the head of an agency simply because they are the head. They can't manage every single aspect, after all. However, it must also be true that, especially now during an election where we know who's important, Trump and Biden must be the absolute top of her list of things to be on top of. I don't see how she can avoid that reality.
Additionally, she did herself no favors with that ridiculous excuse about why there wasn't anyone on the shooters rooftop. There were photos of three people standing over the dead shooter that shows that excuse was nonsense.
She will be questioned Monday.
What is really obnoxious is her attitude:
I'm quite sure the Monday hearing will be heated.
I am very glad the hearing will be in front of the House Oversight Committee and not the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. There have been too many hearings in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee where questions have been very limited. Almost as if the Democrats running the committees are against evidence being brought forth.
I really can’t believe the stories coming out about how badly the secret service botched this.
apparently, assassins can just camp out on “sloped roofs” because they are just too dangerous for modern agents to check.
It is hard to understand, since Secret Service and FBI agents are notoriously devoted to Trump.
I think there was some complacency and laziness involved here. Not sure that is the secret service director's fault.
She just went on national TV and defended not having assets on an area they knew was a danger because it had a "sloped roof"
Is it possible to get fired for performance in the Biden Admin? Is there any concept of responsibility among it's leaders?
They saw the shooter using a range finder and didn't bother to stop him. The incompetence is off the charts.
The "leader" takes the blame for her employees.
She fucked up.
I can't even IMAGINE what one would have to do to get fired for incompetency in the Biden Administration.
Of course, I have my doubts if anyone in the Biden Admin. could even identify incompetency if they saw it.
As if they don't have ropes, sticky boots, harnesses and other such equipment for special ops. Hell even the cops on "Christmas Vacation" had ropes to swing into the house
Irrelevant. She sets the tone and she answers to Congress and the President for her underlings' failures. The SS was in charge, they failed, several people should pay the price including her.
dressing like a sexual freak and stealing luggage from airports will cause one to lose their job from this disastrous administration.
It's apparently impossible,as the person who authorized this still has a job: "Money has instead been diverted to DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). Investment in new technology, including state-of-the-art drones, was also sacrificed at the altar of DEI".
Only if they get caught.
As someone on twitter said, you can go to Home Depot and hire a guy in the parking lot who's capable of standing watch on a sloped roof. It's really not hard to do.
So you don't believe the buck stops with her. After all, she is the boss. It was pure incompetence, and the fault ultimately goes to the top with Biden and his stupid political picks for these positions.
Too bad dressing like a freak wasn't disqualifying all by itself.
When talking about any government organization, an example is the military, the commanding officer or head of the organization is directly responsible for the actions of those below them in the chain of command. And there definitely was a severe breakdown in said chain of command. Cheadle and her boss most definitely dropped the ball and violated the canine on this one.
C’mon Sailor, tell it like it is.
They screwed to pooch!
Of course it is! The mere fact that Jill Biden hired him makes him guilty.
You forgot the sarc tag.
No and no. Just look at the low standards set by the Biden Admin.
Secret Service agents have been warned to not talk to anyone.
DEI caused people to die, This incompetence must be ended. We need high standards not check the box hires.
What the huh?
There was a former Secret Service officer on the news the other day. He called it outrageous. He said when he was in the secret service you had to go about 400 deep before you found a member who was not a tall man capable of protecting someone. He looked at the film and couldn't' believe all the little women assigned to protecting Trump.
Oh, come on! Be serious! This the failing of DEI?
Trump is 6’3”, they were out in the open, with the shooter above. No one was going to be able to cover him once he stood up, unless you want to hire the Lakers for the Secret Service.
Did the little girls also make Trump pump his fist in the air? Maybe he’s just too stupid to be president.
Absolute fail of a comparison. Reagan was shot right in front of his own limo. Trump was giving a speech out in the open. Do you think Trump was going to stand next to his SUV while he gave a speech?
So the gist of this seems to be that Trump was in mortal danger because…women. Clearly, a bigoted, partisan moron wrote this article.
Reagan was not a small guy, Google his shooting. Huge difference. The SS failed on several levels with this one. No debate about it.
OMG. Do you think I’m 10 years old? I remember the shooting. I don’t need to Google it. What would you have me look for?
I’ve already listed some differences. So . . . We agree?
OMG, don’t be so sensitive.
Yes you pointed out a key difference. The key point being the SS completely blocked Reagan from further shooting. Had they done that with this incident, Trump never would have got up to make his fist move. Making himself a target again.
Has nothing to do with the distance to the SUV. It has to do with protecting the POTUS from further exposure in any circumstance. Which they failed at in a big way.
Ok, maybe I didn’t make this clear. Hinckley was right there, super close, and on the same sidewalk level as Reagan. The car was also right there. Blocking Reagan from the shooter and getting him in the car were much easier than the Trump situation.
Not only was Reagan whisked away - Hinckley was instantly smothered by like a dozen people. He was neutralized immediately. That was not possible with Trump’s shooter. He had to be taken at a distance by Secret Service snipers.
None of that has anything to do with the agents. It’s just a different scenario.
Why did they let him stand up?
I have it on good authority that he recognized that moment for the magnificent photo-op that it was, despite have just been shot at.
You're absolutely right. But both should've been controlled environments.
Yes. That was literally my first thought when I saw the vid for the first time. In the past, every threat situation, even false ones, gave the impression that the package (the person being protected) became exactly that. Just a package with no say. The SS just hustled the package off regardless of what the package thought. That the package may have been the most powerful person on the planet was irrelevant.
I'm not a fan of Trump, the person, although I like many of his policies. In spite of that, I don't think anyone could call him a coward after this. The guy knew how close to death he had been but still had the presence of mind to make that moment on camera.
If you watch the original video, you can hear them call that the “shooter is down.” That’s when they picked him up to get him out of there.
What would you do? Just keep laying on him and let him bleed? Keep him out in the world a little longer in case there was another shooter to keep taking shots at a stationary target?
Yeah I 100% believe that. Do you think that’s smart? Reconcile this: you think smart agents would cover him up, but somehow it’s also smart for him to expose himself? Make it make sense.
I believe two relevant things. 1) Most or all Secret Service agents are doing their best to protect their assigned person - even to the point of positioning themselves to take a bullet, which all of them did. And 2) You can’t completely control every environment. You can do everything right and still not have total control.
Frankly, I think it’s bullshit to just crap on The Secret Service in general, as well as the specific agents on scene. But everyone wants to earn political points by flexing their outrage.
Really? "Shooter is down" is the best you have. Well they missed stopping the shooter before he fired how many shots at the President? They didn't have the area secured; it still wasn't secured after they downed the shooter. If there was a second shooter Trump would have been toast. Clean head and upper body torso shot.
The agents are supposed to coach the package when they are top of him that when they move he is to bend at the waist and allow them to cover him. With Trump's height a better option would have been to have him hump the ground (as my former Ranger friend would say) all the way to the vehicle. There is clear audio- guess what the agents failed to tell Trump before they started to move him? If the agents really wanted to pin Trump down do you really think he is strong enough to overpower 7 or 8 agents to get off a fist pump? I agree what Trump did was beyond stupid. It also probably just won him the election no matter how shrill the Democrat and their media lemmings make it for the rest of the way.
Except Trump was still exposed as they were moving him; and they were slow to get him to the vehicle and for the vehicle to depart.
BS. They didn't do everything right. Outside of rushing to the packaging they didn't do anything right. Acting like this should be glossed over with an "all's well that ends well" attitude isn't going to fix the problem; and definitely won't prevent it again. Think the next shooter isn't emboldened by how close this one got? Trump doesn't turn his head; and Trump is dead- and this country goes straight to hell in a handbasket.
Do nothing and expect better results next time. That will for sure fix the problem. If the positions were reversed and Trump were president and Biden were the challenger with insufficient secret service protection- Democrats would be screaming for Trump's head. There would be a full on investigation followed by an impeachment. They impeached Trump for far less; so don't even try to pretend it wouldn't happen.
It absolutely was. Politically, that photo is priceless. Surely you know its value.
The best I have? WTF is wrong with you? It’s not an argument or a point of view. It’s what happened. So yeah, I guess reality is the best I have. Holy shit, people like to argue! But it’s not a thinking argument. You’re mad I said what happened. Unbefuckinglievable. Just bizarre.
How do you know they didn’t? Have you seen the result of his lawyers try to coach Trump into simply shutting the fuck up in court? It’s impossible. He doesn’t coach because he’s a narcissistic brat with no self control.
You want a 78 year old, overweight man in a suit - who cares about his image and personal dignity more than anything else in the world - to “hump the ground all the way to the vehicle?” That’s insane.
You should really call up the Secret Service with these tips. You know, they’re brand new at this shit and are probably just waiting by the phone for an expert - like you - to call and tell them how to protect the president. I’m sure they’ll take good notes.
As usual, fucking awesome.
Oh, no question. Politically, Trump couldn’t asked for a better photo op.
Having bodyguards his size or bigger is 101 stuff. It's not like 6'3 is off the charts tall.
Is it? What’s your source for that wisdom? Are you holding on to the Secret Manual for guarding the president? Or did you just read it in this article and accept it blindly?
I truly doubt there is a source. Best I can see, there are no height requirements for the secret service. And the secret service does not publish stats on its agents.
It's about as common as sense as there is. Do you really need it explained why?
Oh! Well if all we need is common sense, I guess Secret Service agents don’t need to go through all that training, eh?
You know, there’s a common, but fascinating conceit I see a lot. So many people think that whatever random, uneducated thought they have in their head is “common sense.” You might find this disappointing, but it’s not.
Some of the one's on Trump's detail need to go through training again it seems with everything that was missed in securing the location in advance; and all the fuck ups that occurred between the time the shooter was spotted and they finally got Trump in the vehicle.
So much for waiting for the investigation. Seems that leftists have already decided that it is all Trump's fault; and are ready to move on already.
Generally, the linemen in football are the larger players for the same reason
t whatever random, uneducated thought
Lol. Yet you are the one resorting to silly strawmen.
HOw could you possibly take what I wrote as believing size makes in any diminishes the necessity of rigorous training ? What a preposterous deflection.
By all means, tell us how someone who 5 foot 2 100 pounds can use their body as a human shield to protect someone who is 6 foot 3 250 pounds just as well as someone who is 6 foot 4 and 250 pounds with equal training?
Are you staggered by the concept that goalies in hockey tend to be much taller than the average hockey player? How do you explain that? Systematic heightism? Common sense led hockey players to figure out decades ago, size and mass helps block things.
random, uneducated thought they have in their head is “common sense
and people who lack it, can't think for themselves and rely on other factors to make decisions end up not securing a known dangerous location because it has a sloped roof and that's just unsafe. And they court disaster because it's only "common sense" to secure a platform 150 yards with a direct line of sight to a target whose protection is their whole reason for existence.
You are obviously fucked up in your thinking, the best person for the job is always a non-binary transvestite with dwarfism. Who identifies as a person of color. (s)
Demonize, dehumanize and minimize. It’s the triggered mantra when it comes to Trump.
Our friends on the left want statistics to verify your comment. When a simple eye test of this incident is proof enough for folks that aren’t Trump triggered. Imagine if this happens to Biden. They’d be asking for martial law and heads would roll. Which the second part I agree with considering how bad the SS screwed up.
for sure , some involved will definitely lose their asses , not a simple ass chewing, somes careers are likely over , thing is we will never see it , we MIGHT hear of it and they have been "reassigned " .
one can believe it or not , but what i watched happen in this incident , followed exactly what the SS ( those that want to stir the pot over that abbreviation can lick the mixer beaters hoping someone is nice enough to turn off the mixer ) briefs those they are charged with protecting to do. which is simply make ones self as small a target as possible , and drop to the ground , the SS from there can make their dog pile of bodies for adding an extra layer of bodies , Those SS assigned to that close in protection detail did what they were suppose to do .
The SS do have fitness standards just as any LEO agency has now how stringent or lax those standards have become over the last 2 admins i cant say of course , but the last 2 presidents can not claim to have been athletically fit.
As for why there were not more SS assets present , why the assisting agencies only had so many assets available , those answers will come out during the investigation . one will have to wait to see what's discovered then .
'My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge' seems to be prevalent here on NT
Do you even read the thread you are participating in? I never said any part of this was Trump’s fault. The only ones who have reached a conclusion on what happened is the people on the Right who are 100% certain the that the Secret Service fucked up because Biden and/or his wife decided to hire incompetent women or some misogynistic shit like that.
You realize that’s an incomprehensible word salad, right?
Where did you get the physical stats on the agents guarding Trump?
Actually, I’ll tell you what I would do, because I see a problem protecting anyone from a sniper positioned above the target. I don’t think having 6’4” agents would make much of a difference. That strikes me as caveman tactics.
Even ancient soldiers knew the value of a shield. I’d use a big ass umbrella - one maid of Kevlar. They’re easy to carry, so multiple agents could have one. They could pop it up in a second. The shooter wouldn’t be able to see the target, and the shield is bulletproof.
Ignorance sometimes stems from not being very well informed.
Read post 5.2
Doesn’t change anything. People on TV say all sorts of things. It’s not a genuine review of the event. I’ll wait for that because I don’t have a political agenda attached to this, like some of you obviously do.
See you Monday evening.
Im wondering how many here can say they have worked with the Secret Service in any capacity ?
I did for a period of time when Bush the elder was both president and vice president when i was active duty military and he would fly into the base i was stationed at to go to Kennebunkport .
I also had the opportunity in the 90s to have a contact with them when Bill Clinton vacationed here in Wyoming,Jackson to be exact and he decided to raft the snake river and i was a volunteer on the local search and rescue unit that specialized in high altitude , high angle and white water/ swift water rescue , i got out of that deal though ., doubt they will EVER require or ask for my services again .
The more things change the more they stay the same.
President Gerald Ford came to a festival in northern Michigan in 1976. Grand Marshal of the parade. SS presence was abundant. Checking every cooler etc. A SS agent asked to check ours and I said knock yourself out. Only he couldn’t figure out how to open it. After a few minutes my ten year old brother showed him mercy on how to open it. It was one those push a button to slide open the lid jobs. Relatively new at the time.
Now that was one embarrassed SS agent.
So now 6 days later we know that the parents called the police the day of the shooting.
We know that the police and SS were looking for him, found him once but he only had a back pack, no rifle
and they lost him in the Farm Show crowd.
The same sniper team that killed him later saw him using a range finder and alerted all of the LEOs
but again he evaded police in the gathering rally crowd.
The Sheets guy alerted the police to the correct roof and one officer hoisted another to the edge of the roof where he was looking directly at the shooter looking at him. The officer pushed off backwards and fell to the ground.
The shooter immediately began shooting towards the stage.
The counter sniper on the far opposite side of the stage killed the shooter.
The SS and LEOs knew the guy was armed and dangerous, they are guessing that he prepositioned the rifle among the AC plumbing on the roof sometime earlier Saturday.
His internet searches were all about depression, Trump, Biden, the AG and the DNC convention in August.
Let the blame game continue.
Thats all pretty much the timeline im seeing reported .
as for the range finder , i read there was some confusion as to if that was what it was or a camcorder or a monocular with optics today it can be confusing .
I also just read a tidbit of information that raised a question for myself .
there is also a water tower on site , it has complete view over all the buildings roofs, yet no one was there .
i think you now may see my question , obi wan would not be pleased .
The water tower is only a few hundred feet from the shooters
building and access was controlled by local and State Police.
It would have required gaining access to the locked door
then climbing a 125 foot ladder to the top inside the central support
or scaling one of the legs in plain sight
and zero exit routes.
This is the same style as the Farm Show water tower
it might have been denied to the shooter , as you point out .
But why deny ones self the vantage point of having the highest point of observation ?
as obi wan tried to teach Anikin , always take and hold the high ground for yourself .
ADD. i also read an article that interviewed a former Ranger , that served in combat in Afghanistan , he stated that the 2 sites he identified himself as problems , the shooters building , and the water tower.
I think in the end, the officer who came face to face with the shooter will get credit for saving Trump's life.
He disrupted the shooters timing and rushed the few shots that he got off.
For a supposedly untrained poor shooter he did remarkably well under duress.
None of the could have, should have, would haves make a difference now.
I considered those reports myself , they all stem and start when he was i think a sophomore in HS from classmates when he attempted to join a school rifle competition team .
IF my math is correct he has had 4 years to improve , practice and get better at just basic target shooting .
you are likely correct in his discovery , might have made him rush shots .
My son in law has been with me for 2 antelope shots , each time he was off to the side , telling me shoot, shoot , he's going to move , thankfully im deaf mostly and can tune him out easily , i took my time and when the shot went , both times at different ranges , i flipped the light switch so to speak , no tracking . or chasing clean and fast .
This year i have 2 antelope tags , im waiting to see if he repeats trying to rush my shots .
I'm also thinking that the second bullet came close enough for Trump to hear before
blood and possibly bone frags from Corey Comperatore hit the former POTUS near the ear.
Comperatore was hit with the first shot only a few feet behind Trump and to Trumps right.
An eye witness said that Comperatore's head had to be covered immediately to hide the brain matter
and gaping wound.
The former WH doc treating Trump said there was only swelling but no wound requiring sutures.
Trump appears to have now ditched the ear "bag" and his ear looks normal.
I have no idea the sequence of the shots , but i did see a video , that i suspect is CGI showing a slow motion sequence where a bullet didnt actually connect but was close enough to move the affected body part ,.
something that close and moving that fast even if it doesnt conect will cause some hydrostatic damage , and after reading that trump told kennedy it felt like the biggest mosquito bite in the world , that could be what happened , but then i thought , the guys never been bite by a horse fly , or been riding a motorcycle shirtless and had a hard shelled june bug hit him in the nipple then , talk about bring one to their knees . the ultimate of nipple cripplers .
The Secret Service and police forces are enamored with Trump, dont know why anyone would want to hurt such a great man, and got complacent and sloppy.
Exactly, same thing happened with the Secret Service and Obama, they got complacent in Columbia and partied with booze and prostitutes.