Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned on Tuesday after initially resisting pressure from Congress.
Ms. Cheatle, an appointee of President Biden who served on his detail when he was vice president, announced her resignation in an email to staff.
She said she takes “full responsibility for the security lapse” at the July 13 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was nearly assassinated, a rallygoer was killed and two others were critically injured.
“In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director,” Ms. Cheatle said in the email, according to The Associated Press.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas confirmed that Ms. Cheatle resigned and announced that her deputy would take over as director in an acting capacity.
Ms. Cheatle’s testimony before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Monday drew bipartisan condemnation and calls for her to resign. She dodged most of the lawmakers’ questions. One frustrated House Republican on the panel had planned to force a vote to impeach her.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: Investigating Trump assassination attempts
Her announcement was a significant about-face one day after telling lawmakers, “I think I’m the best person to lead the Secret Service at this time.”
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle welcomed Ms. Cheatle’s resignation as a step toward accountability for the security failures that led to the attempt on Mr. Trump’s life.
“I’m glad she did the right thing,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said, but he called the move “overdue.”
“Now, we have to pick up the pieces,” the Louisiana Republican said. “We have to rebuild the American people’s faith and trust in the Secret Service as an agency. It has an incredibly important responsibility in protecting presidents, former presidents and other officials in the executive branch.”
Mr. Mayorkas appointed Ronald Rowe, the Secret Service’s deputy director, to serve as acting director until a permanent replacement is named. Mr. Rowe has served 24 years in the Secret Service, including leadership roles in protective operations and the agency’s intergovernmental and legislative affairs office.
“I appreciate his willingness to lead the Secret Service at this incredibly challenging moment, as the agency works to get to the bottom of exactly what happened on July 13 and cooperate with ongoing investigations and congressional oversight,” Mr. Mayorkas said.
SEE ALSO: Trump rails against Biden, Harris, says he was honored to take ‘bullet for democracy’
The Secret Service has a $3.1 billion budget and roughly 8,000 employees. It provides regular protection to three dozen U.S. leaders and temporary protection for visiting foreign dignitaries.
The director post does not require Senate confirmation, but some lawmakers are looking to change that.
Sens. Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican, and Catherine Cortez Masto, Nevada Democrat, introduced a bill to subject all Secret Service directors to Senate confirmation and a single, 10-year term.
“The Secret Service is a critically important law enforcement agency, and it’s past time we started treating it that way,” Ms. Cortez Masto said
She said the bill would ensure the service gets the same level of oversight as other federal law enforcement agencies.
Mr. Grassley said requiring Senate confirmation would “put a qualified individual at the agency’s helm.”
Mr. Biden will choose Ms. Cheatle’s replacement, just as he tapped her to lead the Secret Service two years ago.
Ms. Cheatle served on Mr. Biden’s detail when he was vice president, holding a leadership role there and in many other capacities during her Secret Service career. She retired and went to work in the private sector for PepsiCo North America, where she led protective operations.
When Mr. Biden brought her out of retirement to name her director of the Secret Service, he said he and his wife, Jill Biden, had come to “trust her judgment and counsel” during her time on his vice presidential detail and observed her “commitment to her job and to the Secret Service’s people and mission.”
Mr. Biden said in a statement Tuesday that he was grateful for Ms. Cheatle’s nearly three decades of public service, “selflessly” dedicating and risking her life to serve in the Secret Service, and “answering the call to lead” the agency during his administration.
“As a leader, it takes honor, courage and incredible integrity to take full responsibility for an organization tasked with one of the most challenging jobs in public service,” the president said.
Mr. Mayorkas also issued a glowing statement about Ms. Cheatle. He said she returned from retirement to lead the Secret Service in 2022 because of “her devotion to country above all else.”
“Over the past two years, she has led the Secret Service with skill, honor, integrity and tireless dedication,” he said. “She is deeply respected by the men and women of the agency and by her fellow leaders in the Department of Homeland Security.”
Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social after the news of Ms. Cheatle’s resignation, “The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy.”
“IT WAS MY GREAT HONOR TO DO SO!” Mr. Trump said.
The Secret Service is conducting an internal investigation into the security failures surrounding the assassination attempt. Ms. Cheatle stressed the importance of continuity in leadership overseeing that investigation, which is expected to last 60 days, but oversight committee members questioned how she could impartially review the security failures under her watch.
“The Oversight Committee’s hearing resulted in Director Cheatle’s resignation, and there will be more accountability to come,” panel Chairman James Comer, Kentucky Republican, said in a statement.
Ms. Cheatle “instilled no confidence that she has the ability to ensure the Secret Service can meet its protective mission,” he said.
Rep. Nancy Mace, South Carolina Republican, filed a resolution to impeach Ms. Cheatle after the hearing and triggered a process under which the House would have had to vote on it by Wednesday. Ms. Mace withdrew the resolution Tuesday evening now that its purpose is moot.
“It took a congressional subpoena, articles of impeachment, and one of the most embarrassing displays of incompetence in front of the nation and the 118th Congress to get Kimberly Cheatle to resign,” Ms. Mace wrote on X.
The Homeland Security Committee had invited Ms. Cheatle to testify before their panel on Tuesday, but she declined, as did Mr. Mayorkas and FBI Director Christopher A. Wray. The Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing with Mr. Wray on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Homeland Security Committee heard from Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Christopher L. Paris instead of federal officials.
Commissioner Paris testified that the planning for and interagency communications during Mr. Trump’s July 13 rally were no different from dozens of other events state police coordinate with the Secret Service. Mr. Biden visits the state often because the presidential battleground state is where he grew up. Officials from both presidential campaigns who have Secret Service protection also frequently hold events there.
Commissioner Paris did not reveal any significant operational failures of state and local police but shared several details about their involvement in securing the Butler rally, including events surrounding the initial identification of the shooter as a suspicious person and efforts to find him after he was spotted.
Rep. Dan Bishop, North Carolina Republican, told Commissioner Paris that his candor during the hearing was “refreshing.” He said it marked a “clear contrast” from Ms. Cheatle’s testimony to the oversight committee on Monday.
The news of Ms. Cheatle’s resignation broke in the early part of the hearing. Several committee members applauded it as a first step toward accountability for the security failures of July 13.
Rep. Glenn Ivey, Maryland Democrat, said he hopes the process of replacing Ms. Cheatle does not get in the way of uncovering answers.
“We’ve got other events coming up in the future,” he said. “We need to take those lessons quickly.”
• Lindsey McPherson can be reached at lmcpherson@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.