The U.S. Secret Service’s acting director told a U.S. House of Representatives panel on Thursday that he overhauled the agency’s security practices after a gunman shot President-elect Donald Trump in July, but not everyone was impressed.
Acting Director Ronald Rowe testified before a House task force consisting of seven Republicans and six Democrats that has been investigating two failed assassination attempts on Trump during this year’s presidential campaign. Things grew heated at times.
Rowe earned praise from many Republican lawmakers for cooperating with the investigation, but he erupted at Representative Pat Fallon, R-Texas, after the congressman questioned Rowe’s appearance at a ceremony this year commemorating the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Fallon accused Rowe of putting lives in danger to stand behind Vice President Kamala Harris for prestige, angrily telling Rowe he put agents “out of position” as a result.
“Do you know why you were there? Because you wanted to be visible because you’re auditioning for this job that you’re not going to get,” Fallon alleged.
“Do not invoke 9/11 for political purposes!” Rowe yelled, adding that he responded to the World Trade Center site following the attack and attended the ceremony to represent the Secret Service. “You are out of line, congressman,” as the two men angrily shouted over each other’s comments.
Fallon said he was asking “serious questions” about whether Rowe was there to provide protection for high-level officials at the ceremony.
Rowe was tapped as the acting director of the embattled agency in late July after the former director resigned following blistering criticism from bipartisan lawmakers investigating the shooting. Rowe was the second-in-command of the agency behind former director Kimberly Cheatle at the time of the first attempted assassination.
This week’s hearing is the last session of a bipartisan House task force investigating security lapses that led to the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, which left Trump and two others wounded and one man killed. The group will submit their final report of the incident by Dec. 13, according to the approved resolution establishing the task force.
USA TODAY’s John Bacon, Josh Meyer, Bart Jansen, Ken Tran, Jorge L. Ortiz; USA TODAY Network staff and Reuters contributed to the reporting of this story.
Kathryn Palmer is an elections fellow for USA TODAY. Reach her at kapalmer@gannett.com and follow her on X @KathrynPlmr.
