Trump assassination, Secret Service director says he will not resign

US Secret Services Director Kimberly Chetle said her agency is responsible for protecting former President Donald Trump and that the ultimate responsibility for what this agency does is hers.

In an exclusive interview for journalist David Muir of the television network ABC News) she said her initial reaction when she heard of the gun attack on former President Donald Trump was “troding and then concern”.

Ms. Chetle added that she did not plan to leave the post and that the agency she runs will continue to be transparent and communicate with the public, as she put it.

The Secret Service voiced support Tuesday for local police amid security criticism at the rally held Saturday in Buttler, Pennsylvania.

“We are deeply grateful to officers who ran into danger of finding the armed person and all our local partners for their steadfast commitment”, a statement published Tuesday said.

Any news that suggests the Secret Service blames local law enforcement structures on Saturday's event is simply not true”.

Officials are seeking to know how an armed person managed to climb to the top of a building and shoot former President Donald Trump.

Police had received reports of the suspicious person from witnesses who had shown and shouted in the direction of security workers in the scene, pointing fingers at the armed man on the roof of a building very close to where he was giving the former President Trump speech.

U.S. media who have examined videos taken from those at the gatherings say police have been notified at least 1 minute and 57 seconds before Cruux fired guns.

As a result of the attack, Mr. Trump was wounded in his right ear, as well as two other people, attending the gathering.

A former fire service chief, 50-year-old Corey Computer, was killed protecting his family.

The case will also be investigated by Congress in addition to a review ordered by President Joe Biden.

Mr. Biden has ordered an independent investigation into the assassination against the former president, including security measures taken for the rally.

US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said he had “full confidence in the Secret Service, but acknowledged that the armed person should never have reached that position that led to the risk of the former president's life.

US National Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whose agency includes the Secret Service, told reporters Monday that he expected an independent investigation into the event to begin within days.

Mr. Mayorkas said the investigation will review the actions of the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies “before, during and after the armed attack, to identify immediate and time-seeking actions, to ensure that the mission to protect the former president has been more effectively fulfilled”.

The case is being investigated by several Congress commissions. Lawmakers have expressed alarm at how the armed person, identified as Thomas Matthew Croux, was able to open fire from the roof of a building that was only 135m away from the former president.

Congress has scheduled for the first Cheatle lady's testimony hearing on July 22nd. Secret Service Director will speak to the Chamber Commission for Monitoring and Accounting. / VOA