The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting presidents in the United States, is being discussed in the American public with the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. The question of how the assassin named Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to approach the rally area with his gun is on the agenda.
Former President Trump escaped the attack on his life with minor injuries.
In US history, four presidents have lost their lives in assassination attempts.
Many conspiracy theories were produced after US President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed in an open-top vehicle in 1963.
We examined the Secret Service, which has transformed many times since its founding, with assassinations of presidents.
When was it founded?
The Secret Service was established in 1865 under the Treasury Department to combat counterfeiting. In the 1860s, there was a great deal of counterfeit money being introduced into the American market.
The person who wanted the Secret Service to be established was Abraham Lincoln, who would be assassinated. When Lincoln, who went down in history for his role in the abolition of slavery, was killed, there was no private security unit to protect presidents yet.
The Secret Service was authorized to protect American presidents after the assassination of the third president in history.
After James A. Garfield was assassinated in 1881 and William McKinley was assassinated in 1901, Congress assigned the task of protecting the Secret Service agents. In the early years, only two agents protected the sitting president.
Over the years, protection has been provided to vice presidents, families and former presidents, and the number of security detail has increased.
The Secret Service has around 8,000 personnel, both uniformed and non-uniformed.
As of 2024, the Secret Service is protecting 34 people on a permanent basis, including children of former presidents who are under 16.
Kennedy Assassination and armored vehicles
The Secret Service’s use of security around presidential corteges goes back to horse-drawn vehicles. Starting in the 1930s, presidents began using motorized vehicles, and armored vehicles were first used.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidential vehicle with bulletproof windows was seized from the famous gangster Al Capone and given to the White House for use.
However, the vehicle used by President John F. Kennedy during his assassination in Texas in 1963 was not armored. Furthermore, the top of the Ford vehicle was open at the time of the attack.
President JFK was assassinated at the age of 46 in an event that went down in U.S. history as the “Kennedy moment,” referring to the American people remembering where he was and what he was doing at that moment.
This assassination attracted great attention, as did films such as JFK and In the Line of Fire, which centered on the assassination.
After the Kennedy assassination, the same vehicle was made fully armored and given to the presidents for use.
After this assassination, which was described as the “worst day” in the history of the Secret Service, agents began to undergo special training and the service took on an “elite” identity.
Secret Service agents stood guard over Trump for the first time in 43 years after the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan, from which he survived with minor injuries.
How is the assassination attempt on Trump being discussed?
Many questions are being asked about how Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to get within a little more than 100 yards of Donald Trump.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle will answer these questions at a Congressional hearing on July 22.
Calculations show that the attacker targeted Trump from a distance of 135 meters.
One claim made was that more agents were requested for security, but were not provided. Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said this was not true.
Another allegation was that Secret Service resources were used to protect President Joe Biden’s wife, Jil Biden, and this allegation was also denied.
An eyewitness who spotted the assassin before the attack, who spoke to the BBC, said they tried to warn police about the attacker’s location but received no response.
Thomas Matthew Crooks was shot dead by police snipers on a rooftop where he targeted Trump.
While security forces are trying to determine why Crooks wanted to kill Trump, an internal investigation will also be conducted by the Secret Service.
That review will likely answer these questions:
- Wasn’t the roof where the attacker was located checked?
- Were human resources insufficient?
- Were the warnings not taken seriously?
- Was Trump removed from the podium quickly enough?
Preliminary results of the investigation into the incident, which many former agents and security officials have called a “serious error,” are expected to be released soon.
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2024-07-20 16:35:46