The Secret Service is currently operating with about 400 fewer employees than what Congress has authorized as the agency is facing fresh scrutiny in the wake of the second Trump assassination attempt, a report says.
As of February, there were 7,879 people employed by the Secret Service, according to government records viewed by Reuters, which falls short of the around 8,300 staffers that the agency’s annual budget calls for.
“The Secret Service does not have the resources, it doesn’t have the bodies,” former agent Bill Gage told the news agency.
The latest attempt on Trump’s life was thwarted on Sunday by a Secret Service agent who opened fire at an armed man stationed near the perimeter fence of the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. That suspect, Ryan Routh, was later tracked down and taken into custody.
Former agents told Reuters that Trump’s desire to play golf on his own courses – such as the one he was playing on Sunday, which is a short distance from his Mar-a-Lago residence – generates additional security challenges. The agents say past presidents such as Barack Obama and Bill Clinton usually played on military golf courses that could be shut down to the public.
The agents also told Reuters that the Secret Service has had to expand its protective coverage to a wider group of officials since President Biden dropped his re-election bid in July, placing further strain on its staff.
“The pace, the expectations, the pressure has never been worse than it is right now,” said former agent Kenneth Valentine.
Acting Director Ronald Rowe said to Congress in July that only 2% of applicants are hired for the Secret Service due to the demanding nature of the job, while the agency is also grappling with staff leaving for lucrative positions in the private sector, Reuters reports.
In 2022, former director James Murray outlined to Congress a plan to have 8,305 Secret Service staff members by 2023 and 10,000 by 2027, according to Reuters.
