The Secret Service allegedly pulled from President Joe Biden’s security detail to add protection for former President Donald Trump after he narrowly escaped assassination.
The decision to reduce a sitting president’s detail was unusual but necessary, according to a report from the New York Times.
With Biden relying on security for fewer events as his pace slows, the Secret Service felt it was safe to shift agents temporarily to protect Trump.
Donald Mihalek, who worked for the Secret Service for two decades before retiring in 2019, offered further insight into the decision.
Milhalek said the agency’s methodology is “flexible” and made to “address known, and unknown, threats.”
“The steps the Secret Service is taking are a natural part of its asymmetrical approach to assure their no-fail mission is fulfilled,” he told the outlet.
The embattled agency faced heavy scrutiny after it failed to stop a would-be assassin from opening fire on Trump during an outdoor rally in July. While Secret Service agents were made aware numerous times of the massive security threat prior to the shooting, a gunman shot Trump, killed one spectator, and seriously injured two others.
After facing heavy pressure to resign, Kimberly Cheatle, the agency’s head, stepped down last month.
Trump has not held an outdoor rally since the July debacle, but the Secret Service announced plans to provide additional security should he decide to do so. Ballistic glass, which is designed to repel bullets, will be used at outdoor rallies in the future.
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A bipartisan congressional investigation is underway, along with FBI scrutiny into the attempted assassination.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Secret Service for comment.
