Homeland Security Secretary (DHS) Alejandro Mayorkas defended the presence of women serving in the United States Secret Service, noting that they “deserve our gratitude and respect.”
In a statement released on Saturday, Mayorkas wrote that the “statements questioning the presence of women in law enforcement,” in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump were “baseless and insulting.”
Mayorkas’s statement comes a week after an assassination attempt on Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. The former president was shot by a “bullet that pierced the upper part” of his right ear after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire from the rooftop of a nearby building, where he had a direct line of sight on Trump.
“In the days following the attempted assassination of former President Trump, some people have made public statements questioning the presence of women in law enforcement, including in the United States Secret Service,” Mayorkas wrote. “These assertions are baseless and insulting.”
Statement regarding recent comments questioning the presence of women in law enforcement: https://t.co/NaTdDM0R85 pic.twitter.com/dkCY7Yoalb
— Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas (@SecMayorkas) July 20, 2024
“Every single day, in communities big and small across our great country, women are serving in federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and campus law enforcement,” Mayorkas added. “They are highly trained and skilled professionals, who risk their lives on the front lines for the safety and security of others. They are brave and selfless patriots who deserve our gratitude and respect.”
In the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Trump, the Secret Service has faced an increased amount of questioning regarding the security lapses at the Trump rally.
The House Oversight and Accountability Committee issued a subpoena for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to appear at a hearing on July 22 to testify before the committee about the assassination attempt on Trump. In an interview with ABC News, Cheatle revealed that snipers had not been placed on the roof Crooks had been on because there was a “safety factor” associated with placing someone on a “sloped roof.”
Cheatle recently admitted to House lawmakers that there had been “mistakes and gaps,” according to Axios.