Six US Secret Service agents suspended for lapse during Donald Trump Butler assassination attempt
According to Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn, the suspensions range from 10 to 42 days. While the agents will not be dismissed, they will be reassigned to roles with reduced operational responsibilities once they return to duty, the New York Post reported.
'We aren't going to fire our way out of this,' Quinn told the outlet. 'We're going to focus on the root cause and fix the deficiencies that put us in that situation.'
During a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds on July 13, 2024, Trump, then the presumptive Republican nominee, was grazed in the ear by a bullet fired by 20-year-old would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks. The shot left Trump visibly bloodied.
Firefighter Corey Comperatore was fatally shot while protecting his family, and two others sustained serious injuries. Crooks had positioned himself on an unsecured rooftop with a direct view of the stage before being neutralized by a Secret Service sniper.
A second assasination attempt against Trump took place two months later at the president's Palm Beach, Fla., golf course.
'Butler was an operational failure and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again,' Matt Quinn told CBS News.
However, earlier in September 2024, in a post on his own social media platform, Truth Social, Donald Trump thanked the US Secret Service and other law enforcement officials for keeping him safe during the assassination attempt.
'THE JOB DONE WAS ABSOLUTELY OUTSTANDING. I would like to thank everyone for your concern and well wishes — It was certainly an interesting day! Most importantly, I want to thank the US Secret Service, Sheriff Ric Bradshaw and his Office of brave and dedicated patriots, and, all of the law enforcement, for the incredible job done today at Trump International in keeping me, as the 45th President of the United States, and the Republican nominee in the upcoming presidential election, SAFE,' he wrote.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
19 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Swiss gold industry warns against Swatch boss's US gold tax proposal
Synopsis Following U.S. tariffs on Swiss goods, Swatch CEO Nick Hayek proposed a retaliatory export tax on Swiss gold bars destined for the United States. However, the Swiss Association of Manufacturers and Traders in Precious Metals expressed skepticism, fearing economic harm and damage to Switzerland's reputation as a free trade advocate. Reuters Gold bullion bars (file photo) Switzerland's gold industry on Thursday voiced skepticism about a proposal by the boss of watchmaker Swatch to introduce a levy on gold exports to the United States in retaliation for U.S. tariffs on Switzerland. U.S. President Donald Trump last week imposed tariffs of 39% on imported Swiss goods, causing shock and dismay in the Alpine republic, a major refining and transit hub for gold. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection afterwards said Washington might put tariffs on the most widely-traded gold bullion bars in the United States. However, Trump said on Monday that gold would not face tariffs. Swatch CEO Nick Hayek told Swiss newspaper Blick that Trump's announcement indicated that tariffs on gold would be painful for the U.S. president. "Now is the time to go on the offensive. Switzerland should order a 39% export tax on gold bars for the United States," Hayek told the paper. "That's where we have to get at him. That's his Achilles' heel." The Swiss Association of Manufacturers and Traders in Precious Metals (ASFCMP) said that while ideas to better balance bilateral trade were welcome, careful consideration needed to be given to Switzerland's longer-term interests. "An export tax on Swiss gold destined for the USA would not only harm Switzerland economically, but also damage the reputation of a country that has consistently promoted and defended free trade," ASFCMP President Christoph Wild said. The Swiss Economy Ministry declined to comment on the proposal, but said the support of business representatives was in general welcome and helped underscore the close economic ties between the U.S. and Switzerland. Trump justified his 39% tariff by pointing to Switzerland's sizeable trade surplus with the United States. Part of that is due to gold exports. Hayek said that even if a gold levy failed to move Trump, it would cut the U.S. trade deficit with Switzerland. "If Trump doesn't give in to our pressure, we'll at least improve the trade balance with the U.S. if the Americans no longer import gold bars via Switzerland," he told Blick. Switzerland is continuing to hold talks with U.S. officials aimed at lowering the U.S. tariffs.
Mint
20 minutes ago
- Mint
Trump's crypto cheer lifts Bitcoin, but core risks still loom
The cryptocurrency faithful are having quite a moment. Donald Trump's return to the White House has brought a veritable cornucopia of pro-crypto promises, from talk of a 'Strategic Bitcoin Reserve" to declarations about making America the 'crypto capital of the world." Markets have reacted predictably: Bitcoin has surged past previous highs, and believers are treating this as ultimate vindication. Yet beneath the sheen of political legitimacy, nothing fundamental has changed about cryptocurrencies' essential nature. The irony in Trump's embrace of crypto is hard to miss. The proposed 'Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and US Digital Asset Stockpile" will apparently consist entirely of assets seized from criminals. In other words, the US government's official cryptocurrency holdings will be digital assets once used for ransomware, money laundering, drug trafficking, and other illicit activities. It's rather like announcing a strategic reserve of stolen goods as proof of their virtue. This detail neatly captures crypto's central problem. Despite all the technological sophistication and political endorsements, it remains the payment method of choice for criminals worldwide. Every major ransomware attack, dark web marketplace, and cross-border money laundering network gravitates to crypto for the same reasons enthusiasts celebrate it—anonymity, irreversibility, and freedom from traditional oversight. Political enthusiasm can't fix these structural flaws. Governments seeking to legitimise crypto are, in effect, blessing a system designed to bypass governmental authority. The contradiction is glaring: regulators tout an asset class while acknowledging that their strategic reserves will be filled mainly by seizing it from criminals. The ease with which fraud and theft occur in crypto remains staggering. Consider the 'socialised loss" strategy, where a major Indian exchange, after losing customer funds to hackers, decided everyone should share the pain, a perfect example of the Wild West ethos. When exchanges profit, it's capitalism; when they're robbed, suddenly everyone's a socialist. The frequency of such episodes would be comical if they didn't wipe out life savings. These aren't isolated mishaps or growing pains; they're built into a system that operates outside traditional financial protections. When a bank is robbed, deposit insurance protects you. When a crypto exchange is 'hacked", often a euphemism, you're on your own. The very decentralisation crypto champions means there's no safety net when things go wrong. Trump's enthusiasm also underlines another uncomfortable reality: an anti-establishment movement has been fully co-opted by the establishment it once vowed to disrupt. Wall Street, which Bitcoin was meant to circumvent, is now its biggest backer via ETFs and institutional products. The so-called revolutionary currency depends on the same traditional finance for its legitimacy. Political endorsement carries psychological weight. When governments and big institutions adopt a position, it creates an illusion of safety and permanence. Past crypto bubbles fed on tech mystique and get-rich-quick dreams; this cycle adds political validation, which could make it more dangerous for ordinary investors mistaking political backing for sound investment. For Indian investors, the temptation to chase this apparent legitimacy will be strong. Domestic taxation has curbed much local speculation, but political developments in the US could encourage some to seek workarounds. The 'don't miss out" narrative, wrapped in patriotic American rhetoric about financial dominance, could be persuasive. Yet the math hasn't changed. Crypto produces nothing, earns nothing, and represents no underlying asset. It serves no economic purpose that existing systems can't fulfil more efficiently. Its price is driven purely by speculative sentiment, whether fuelled by tech hype, celebrity endorsements, or presidential tweets. The most telling part of crypto's political embrace is how quickly its advocates abandoned anti-government principles in exchange for government approval. Those who once railed against fiat currencies and central banks now cheer politicians promising to hoard their preferred tokens. It's a striking shift from revolutionary idealism to conventional rent-seeking. Short-term price predictions are futile, speculative bubbles can inflate far beyond reason. But knowing what you're buying matters. Political theatre and presidential applause can't turn speculation into investment, gambling into wealth-building, or criminal infrastructure into legitimate finance. However much hot air gets pumped into this bubble, the fundamentals remain unchanged. Dhirendra Kumar is founder and chief executive officer of Value Research, an independent advisory firm. Views expressed are personal.
Mint
20 minutes ago
- Mint
S&P Global upgrades India' rating to BBB amid Trump's 50% tariffs, says outlook stable
Ratings agency S&P Global has today upgraded India's sovereign rating to BBB from its earlier rating of BBB-, while maintaining the economic outlook as 'stable'. This comes just ahead of Independence Day tomorrow and amid United States President Donald Trump's imposition of 50 per cent tariffs. Further, S&P Global has also revised India's short-term rating to A-2 from A-3, and improved the transfer and convertibility assessment to A- from BBB+. In its report, S&P Global said their 'stable' assessment reflects confidence in continued policy stability and that high infrastructure investment will support India's long-term growth prospects. 'That, along with cautious fiscal and monetary policy that moderates that government's elevated debt and interest burden will underpin the rating over the next 24 months,' it added. (This is a breaking story, more updates coming…)
