The assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump has changed the mood of the Republican National Convention, and key members of the Illinois Republican delegation are now demanding that the head of the U.S. Secret Service steps down over the agency's handling of Saturday’s rally.
"Secret Service has one job to do: that's to protect the entity that they're in charge of protecting. That didn't happen," said U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Illinois.
LaHood said the assassination attempt should be a wake-up call to the Secret Service. The fact that a gunman was able to get so close to Trump is raising questions about the agency's security plans. Top Republicans, both nationally and here in Illinois, want answers on how it happened.
"It's really embarrassing and unacceptable to see the videos that have come out, the fact this guy got on a ladder, climbed up on a shed and was able to shoot at President Trump," LaHood said.
LaHood is one of at least three Illinois Republicans, along with U.S. Reps. Mike Bost and Mary Miller, calling for U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to step down.
"It's not just about what happened with Donald Trump. We need to know what happened at that rally. What fell and failed?" Bost asked.
Miller also expressed her concerns about Cheatle's leadership, writing in a statement: "I am gravely concerned that so many important questions remain unanswered, especially as reports suggest law enforcement and Secret Service were aware that this man posed a threat at multiple points during the day."
Cheatle, who attended Eastern Illinois University, has been the director since 2022. She worked global security at Pepsi-Co and before that, spent 27 years with the Secret Service.
"We also need to know in the future that it never happens again. I don't care if it's [a] Democrat, Republican, Independent. Once you receive your detail from the Secret Service, they need to do their job," Bost said.
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House Speaker Mike Johnson — who wants Cheatle out, too — plans to set up a task force of Republicans and Democrats to investigate the incident. House lawmakers issued a subpoena compelling Cheatle to appear before a House committee on Monday. Cheatle, however, has said she has no intentions of stepping down.
