US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned on Tuesday, following widespread criticism over the agency’s failure to prevent an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
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Cheatle faced mounting bipartisan pressure to step down after a 20-year-old gunman wounded Trump at a July 13 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The attack left Trump, a current White House candidate, with a minor injury to his right ear.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, stated, “It is overdue, she should have done this at least a week ago. I’m happy to see that she has heeded the call of both Republicans and Democrats.”
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President Joe Biden expressed gratitude for Cheatle’s nearly three decades of service in the Secret Service, acknowledging her dedication and bravery.
“We all know what happened that day can never happen again,” Biden said in a statement.
“As we move forward, I wish Kim all the best, and I will plan to appoint a new director soon.”
Cheatle had appeared before a congressional oversight committee on Monday, where she admitted that the attack on Trump marked “the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades.”
During the hearing, lawmakers from both parties demanded her resignation, frustrated by her refusal to provide specific details about the attack due to ongoing investigations.
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The incident occurred when a gunman, armed with an AR-style assault rifle, opened fire on Trump shortly after he began speaking at the rally.
The shooter, positioned on the roof of a nearby building, was killed by a Secret Service sniper within 30 seconds of firing the first of eight shots.
The investigation revealed that the assailant, who lived approximately 50 miles from Butler, acted alone, with no strong ideological or political motivations identified.
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The attack also resulted in serious injuries to two rally attendees and the death of a 50-year-old Pennsylvania firefighter, Corey Comperatore.
Former White House physician Ronny Jackson disclosed that Trump sustained a two-centimeter gunshot wound on his right ear, narrowly missing his head.
“The bullet passed, coming less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head, and struck the top of his right ear,” Jackson said.
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Cheatle, who had served as a Secret Service agent for 27 years before joining PepsiCo as head of security in North America in 2021, was appointed as the agency’s director by President Biden in 2022.
