A legal group aligned with Donald Trump sued the Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service on Thursday, arguing the agencies were not honoring records requests related to the July assassination attempt on the former president in Butler, Pennsylvania.
America First Legal, a nonprofit organization founded by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller, said it submitted expedited public records requests within hours and days of the incident, seeking details about Secret Service’s hiring standards, possible staffing shortages, and various communications and calendars of leadership.
The group said it had not yet received any of the requested documents.
America First Legal was among several entities to launch investigations into the assassination attempt, during which a gunman opened fire at a Trump rally on July 13, leaving one person dead, two people injured, and the former president with a minor injury.
The incident marked the Secret Service’s greatest security failure in decades. The agency is nearing completion of an internal review of what happened, and both the Senate and the House are also investigating the matter. While public reports on their investigative findings remain forthcoming, glaring breakdowns in law enforcement communication during the rally have emerged as a top factor in the attempt on Trump’s life.
DHS and Secret Service officials have repeatedly said they are complying with congressional requests for interviews and material related to the shooting. However, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) told reporters on Capitol Hill this week that the DHS, under which the Secret Service is housed, has been uncooperative with the Senate to the point of “stonewalling.”
Earlier this month, Blumenthal said he believed people would be “shocked” and “appalled” when they learn the extent of the security lapses that occurred in Butler and that the Senate plans to release an interim report on its findings soon.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the DHS and the Secret Service about compliance with outside Freedom of Information Act requests, such as the ones from America First Legal.
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America First Legal said the urgency of its requests was bolstered by the fact that a second apparent assassination attempt of Trump occurred over the weekend while the former president was golfing in Florida. He was unharmed during the incident, but, according to authorities, the gunman was able to set up a perch with a loaded semiautomatic rifle at the edge of the golf course before Secret Service agents spotted him.
“There is no denying that President Trump currently faces genuine threats, and AFL’s requests would help to ensure that USSS and DHS leadership are sufficiently trained and staffed to ensure the safety of President Trump,” the legal group wrote in a statement.
