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From Fox News: Local law enforcement repeatedly offered to provide drone coverage in the sky above former President Trump’s July 13 campaign rally — where he survived a failed assassination attempt — but was rebuffed by the U.S. Secret Service (USSS), according to Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., citing a new whistleblower.
“According to one whistleblower, the night before the rally, U.S. Secret Service repeatedly denied offers from a local law enforcement partner to utilize drone technology to secure the rally,” Hawley, a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, wrote in a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
“This means that the technology was both available to USSS and able to be deployed to secure the site. Secret Service said no.”
In his letter, Hawley noted that FBI Director Chris Wray had confirmed that the shooter had used a drone to surveil the site just two hours before Trump took the stage at the outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“This raises an obvious question: why was the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) not using its own drones?” Hawley demanded.
Hawley’s letter further states: “According to one whistleblower, the night before the rally, U.S. Secret Service repeatedly denied offers from a local law enforcement partner to utilize drone technology to secure the rally. This means that the technology was both available to USSS and able to be deployed to secure the site. Secret Service said no. The whistleblower further alleges that after the shooting took place, USSS changed course and asked the local partner to deploy the drone technology to surveil the site in the aftermath of the attack.”
“It is hard to understand why USSS would decline to use drones when they were offered, particularly given the fact USSS permitted the shooter to overfly the rally area with his own drone mere hours before the event. The failure to deploy drone technology is all the more concerning since, according to the whistleblower, the drones USSS were offered had the capability not only to identify active shooters but also to help neutralize them,” the letter continues.
Hawley demanded that Mayorkas hand over all records regarding the matter and declared, “You must al testify before Congress next week about these staggering security failures by your department.”
🚨🚨 NEW – Whistleblower tells me local law enforcement partners & suppliers offered drones to Secret Service BEFORE the rally – but Secret Service declined pic.twitter.com/UM0jfrMc9z
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) July 25, 2024
Secret Service turned down local drone ‘repeatedly’ ahead of Trump July 13 rally: whistleblower https://t.co/yOVGRB7zYv
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 25, 2024
