Republican Sen. John Hawley of Missouri says he was told to leave the venue where former President Donald Trump was shot Saturday when he went to see the place for himself.
“As the Senate prepares for hearings, today I went to Butler County to see the site of the shooting myself — and FBI told me to leave. We need ANSWERS. I won’t stop pushing until we get them,” Hawley wrote Friday in a post on X.
Hawley’s post included a video of his appearance Friday night on Fox News’ “Hannity” program, with host Sean Hannity.
“I’ll tell you one thing — today, Sean, when I went to the site, the FBI has got more security on that site now than they did the night that Trump was shot at,” Hawley told Hannity.
As the Senate prepares for hearings, today I went to Butler County to see the site of the shooting myself – and FBI told me to leave. We need ANSWERS. I won’t stop pushing until we get them pic.twitter.com/rtswNlngGi
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) July 20, 2024
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“The FBI — totally late — and they’re trying to control the information, Sean, they tried to kick me off of the site. They said, ‘Get out of here. You shouldn’t be on this site. We don’t want you here.’ They are trying to control the information,” he said.
“They brought local cops, Sean. Get this. I’m there on the site, I had permission from the local security operator to be there, and they — the FBI — came out and said, ‘You have got to leave, we do not want you here.’
“That’s what they’re trying to do, they’re trying to control it,” he said.
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In another video of the interview posted on X, Hawley says he was stunned at what he was able to see.
“Having been there today myself, I can you, it is so close. That building where the shooter fired from is so close to where Trump was. The idea you could have all of this time elapse and nobody notices, no law enforcement notices he’s on the roof?” Hawley said.
NEW: Senator Josh Hawley says the FBI tried kicking him out of the Pennsylvania rally site when he visited to see things for himself.
Hawley said he was appalled at how close Crooks was able to get to Trump.
He also spoke about the whistleblowers who have come forward, telling… pic.twitter.com/AdW14a5qKd
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 20, 2024
Hawley also said he was told by law enforcement sources that different agencies used different radio channels to communicate, hindering the ability of security to function as a team.
Hawley has said that he has been told many of the people assigned to protect Trump were not Secret Service agents.
In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Hawley expanded on his allegations of Secret Service misconduct, according to a copy of the letter posted on Hawley’s website.
“Whistleblowers who have direct knowledge of the event have approached my office. According to the allegations, the July 13 rally was considered to be a ‘loose’ security event,” Hawley wrote.
“For example, detection canines were not used to monitor entry and detect threats in the usual manner. Individuals without proper designations were able to gain access to backstage areas.
“Department personnel did not appropriately police the security buffer around the podium and were also not stationed at regular intervals around the event’s security perimeter.
Hawley wrote there was a deeper reason for the problems with security for Trump that have been reported.
“In addition, whistleblower allegations suggest the majority of DHS officials were not in fact USSS agents but instead drawn from the department’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This is especially concerning given that HSI agents were unfamiliar with standard protocols typically used at these types of events, according to the allegations,” Hawley wrote.
