The task force will take control of all House probes into the incident and must produce a report on its investigation.
The House of Representatives on July 24 passed a resolution creating a special task force to investigate the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13.
House Speaker Mike Johnson had announced the task force on July 18 amid bipartisan criticism of both the assassination attempt and the U.S. Secret Service’s actions before the incident. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries later endorsed the task force’s creation, which was established by the House in a resolution that passed by a vote of 416 in favor to 0 against.
“[W]e are announcing a House Task Force made up of seven Republicans and six Democrats to thoroughly investigate the matter,” wrote Messrs. Johnson and Jeffries in a joint statement on July 24. “The task force will be empowered with subpoena authority and will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again,” they noted.
According to the authorizing resolution, the task force has been organized as a standing committee of the House. It is required to produce a report on the incident by Dec. 13, 2024, and offer recommendations to Congress on how legislation can prevent assassination attempts in the future.
Several House committees have already held hearings about the incident since July 22. On that day, the House Oversight and Accountability Committee held a hearing with Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.
U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee about the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a campaign event in Pennsylvania, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, July 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
“The assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13th is the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades,” Ms. Cheatle told the committee. “As the Director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse,” she added.
Members from both parties criticized Ms. Cheatle for failing to disclose details about the incident to the committee, citing ongoing investigations. Ms. Cheatle resigned one day later, on July 23, the day that the House Homeland Security Committee held a hearing with the Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner, Col. Christopher Paris, about the state law enforcement response.
On July 24, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing with FBI Director Christopher Wray to discuss the investigation into the shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. Mr. Wray revealed several details to the committee regarding the gunman’s computer search history, activities before the shooting, and how he climbed onto the roof to fire shots at former President Trump.
The stage where former President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pa., on July 14, 2024. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)
The resolution passed by the House requires those committees to transfer any records regarding the incident to the Task Force. Mr. Johnson previously said that the House’s investigative efforts would be centralized under the Task Force.
The resolution was sponsored by Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), in whose congressional district the shooting occurred.
“The goals of my legislation and of this task force are simple: to investigate, detail, and explain the shooting and security breakdowns that tragically killed one person, injured two others, and nearly claimed President Trump’s life,” Mr. Kelly wrote in a statement on his website.
Mr. Johnson will appoint the chairman and members of the task force, with six Democratic members to be recommended by Mr. Jeffries. It remains unclear who will be appointed, though Mr. Johnson’s office told The Epoch Times that members would likely be appointed on July 25.
The office of Mr. Jeffries did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
