A pair of explosive Senate reports have pulled back the curtain on one of the most disturbing scandals in recent political history: the near-assassination of President Donald J. Trump on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Far from being a fluke or unforeseeable tragedy, the reports—released by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) — paint a grim picture of systemic incompetence, bureaucratic arrogance, and inexcusable negligence by the very agency tasked with protecting America’s leaders: the United States Secret Service.

What emerges is a chilling tale of denied security requests, suppressed threat intelligence, faltering communications, and utter failure in basic planning — all of which culminated in a sniper’s bullet grazing the ear of the 45th President of the United States and killing a heroic rally-goer, Corey Comperatore.

A Cascade of Preventable Failures

According to the reports, the Secret Service repeatedly turned down key requests for security reinforcements ahead of the Butler rally, despite multiple warnings and red flags. These weren’t minor asks—they included:

– Anti-drone systems, which were denied because the equipment had been “allocated” for the upcoming Republican and Democrat national conventions.
– Additional sniper teams, which only arrived after senior officials scrambled at the last minute.
– A Counter Assault Team liaison to coordinate with local SWAT teams—denied.

And yet, in the days before the event, gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks freely flew a drone over the fairgrounds, gathering intelligence and planning his attack — completely undetected due to malfunctioning and unmonitored drone detection equipment.

A Known Threat—That No One Shared

Perhaps most damning is the revelation that the Secret Service was briefed 10 days prior on a classified foreign threat to President Trump’s life — likely from Iran, seeking revenge for Trump’s 2020 strike on terrorist general Qasem Soleimani.

But in a bureaucratic act of madness, this critical information was never shared with the local law enforcement officers working the event. Not even the Secret Service’s own advance team on the ground in Butler was made aware of it.

Sen. Grassley’s report blasts the agency’s “siloed” information-sharing practices, stating the Secret Service “had multiple opportunities to share this information” but “repeatedly failed to do so.”

> “This wasn’t just a tragic oversight—it was a catastrophic breakdown in national security,” Grassley declared.

Tech Failures, Communication Gaps, and Deadly Decisions

On the day of the rally, the situation only worsened.

– Anti-drone technology wasn’t just ineffective—it was malfunctioning and being repaired by an agent with no proper training.
– Cell reception across the fairgrounds was spotty at best, leaving agents and law enforcement unable to share real-time intel.
– The agency had no policy in place to test for such issues ahead of time.

And perhaps the most tragic of all, a simple request made by a Trump campaign staffer to not use large farm equipment to block the press’s view of the stage led to the use of a jumbotron and a flag instead—leaving the President exposed to the rooftop where Crooks ultimately fired his shots.

“Not using the farm equipment possibly created an opportunity for the gunman,” Grassley’s report confirms.

Red Flags Ignored—And a Killer Let In

Twenty-five minutes before the first shot rang out, Crooks was already on law enforcement’s radar. He had been flagged at the entrance to the fairgrounds for carrying a rangefinder, a device used by hunters and snipers to calculate distance.

And yet—despite the suspicious nature of the device, despite the classified threats against Trump, despite all the warning signs—Crooks was allowed inside.

This vital piece of information was never passed along to Trump’s personal security team. Had it been, they could have stopped Crooks before he made it to the rooftop.

“The Secret Service failed at every level,” Sen. Paul said. “They failed to act on credible intelligence, failed to coordinate with local law enforcement, and failed to protect President Trump from an attack that nearly ended his life.”

A President Undone by Bureaucracy—and a Hero Lost

Let’s not forget that Corey Comperatore, a firefighter and American patriot, was killed shielding his wife and daughters from Crooks’ bullets. His blood now stains not just the ground of that rally field, but the legacy of a federal agency asleep at the wheel.

“This wasn’t just a tragedy,” Paul said. “It was a scandal.”

And let’s be honest: If this had happened to Joe Biden, the liberal media would still be running wall-to-wall coverage, and every agent involved would be out of a job.

No Accountability. No Shame.

So far, former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has denied responsibility and even disputed the reports’ findings—insisting that security needs were met and intelligence procedures followed.

This comes despite bipartisan outrage and increasing calls for her resignation.

Worse still, the agency reportedly told Senate staff that they don’t even believe it’s necessary to have a formal policy for testing communication or anti-drone systems — comparing it to “turning on a flashlight.”

A flashlight? When protecting the man who could very well be the next President of the United States?

The Bottom Line: America Deserves Better

These reports confirm what millions of Americans already feared: Our institutions are failing—and not by accident. They are crumbling under the weight of political agendas, bureaucratic red tape, and gross incompetence.

President Trump, by the grace of God, survived. But make no mistake: he was not protected. The system failed him, failed his supporters, and failed the American people.

And if these failures aren’t met with serious reform and real accountability, we may not be so lucky next time.

As Senator Grassley concluded, “This report offers a path forward—but only if those in power are willing to take it.”

The American people are watching. And they are demanding answers.