The Secret Service allegedly told former President Donald Trump’s team that it did not have sufficient assets to secure a rally the campaign wanted to hold in Wisconsin, according to a new whistleblower account.
A person with direct knowledge of the exchange provided the whistleblower’s account to Sen. Josh Hawley’s office.
In a letter to Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe, the Missouri Republican asked whether such a denial ever occurred.
The whistleblower alleged that the Secret Service “effectively forced the Trump campaign to cancel an upcoming event in Wisconsin,” Mr. Hawley wrote. He did not share any details on the timing or location of the planned event.
“Other whistleblowers with knowledge of Secret Service planning protocols allege that failure to provide protection for a major public event is highly unusual and that a sitting president would never be denied resources in this way,” Mr. Hawley said.
The Washington Times reached out to the Secret Service and the Trump campaign for comment.
Mr. Hawley told reporters Wednesday that Mr. Rowe called him to push back on the whistleblower’s account but did not directly deny it.
“What he said to me is, ’Well, he is going to be able to do a Wisconsin event. It’s just not going to be a big event,’” Mr. Hawley said. “I said, ’Well, so you’re not denying it. You’re quibbling with it and you’re saying, well, kinda.’”
He said Mr. Rowe was not specific about whether resistance a larger event was because of the ongoing threats against Mr. Trump from Iran.
Mr. Hawley said Mr. Rowe “complained” about the prevalence of whistleblower allegations, telling him, “They’re hurting our agency.”
If this latest whistleblower’s allegations are true, Mr. Hawley said in the letter, it contradicts comments Mr. Rowe made in a press conference Friday, saying Mr. Trump is “getting everything that the current president has with respect to Secret Service assets.”
“That same night, Secret Service secured a rally for Vice President [Kamala] Harris in Madison, Wisconsin,” Mr. Hawley said, pointing out the “apparent double standard” may be influencing the presidential campaign.
“Has the Secret Service ever told President [Joe] Biden or Vice President Harris that the agency could not secure a campaign event of their choosing?” he asked.
Mr. Rowe held the Friday press conference to provide an update on the Secret Service’s internal probe into the first of two assassination attempts on Mr. Trump.
The agency’s summary report of the July 13 attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, said the Secret Service and the Trump staff had “some discussion” about the selection of the Butler Farm Show grounds as the site for the rally.
The Butler Farm is a large open field surrounded by multiple buildings on and near the property. According to the report, the Secret Service and local law enforcement partners viewed the site “as a challenge.”
Mr. Rowe, asked during the press conference about that pushback, said the campaign staff has final discretion on what sites it chooses for events and it is ultimately up to the Secret Service to secure it, whatever the challenges.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s a campaign staff or a White House staff, we have conversations — and we have very good working relationships with those staffs. But ultimately it is the Secret Service’s responsibility to secure a site,” he said.
Mr. Hawley released the new whistleblower account shortly after the Senate unanimously passed a bill to require the Secret Service to extend presidential-level protection to major presidential and vice presidential candidates.
The legislation, which the House passed last week, now heads to Mr. Biden’s desk to be signed into law.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/sep/24/secret-service-told-trump-campaign-it-could-not-se/
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