'Security failure' leading to Trump assassination attempt leads to questions

(The Center Square) — The near assassination of former President and Republican front-runner Donald Trump on Saturday raises questions about security and trust.

"There will be a full investigation, and the facts of this assassination attempt, brutal murder, and assault will become clearer in the days ahead," Georgia state Sen. John Albers, R-Roswell, chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Safety, said in a statement.

In a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Tennessee, chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, said the "seriousness of this security failure and chilling moment in our nation's history cannot be understated."

"No assassination attempt has come so close to taking the life of a president or presidential candidate since President [Ronald] Reagan was shot in 1981," Green wrote . "Had the bullet's trajectory been slightly different, the assassination attempt on President Trump might have succeeded."

U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, similarly sent a letter to U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, chair of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, to launch an investigation into the attempted assassination.

Should Americans have confidence in federal agencies tasked with keeping the public safe, such as the Transportation Security Administration, if the Secret Service, charged with protecting the president and the leading presidential opponent, allows an apparent security breach as it did at the Trump rally?

"That's just it, they have to prove to the American people that the Secret Service is doing whatever they can to provide security for the candidates and the public at these events," Harry Kazakian, founder and CEO of USA Express Legal Support, Claims Management & Investigative Services , told The Center Square via email. "This kind of breach undermines public confidence, especially since what happened in Pennsylvania was entirely preventable.

"It seems that the Secret Service and whoever else was helping with security weren't taking this seriously, depending on something like this not happening deep in Trump-friendly territory," Kazakian added. "They weren't proactive, and the potential threat should have been obvious. All they had to do was put someone on that roof."

Kazakian questioned whether authorities used air support as part of the security plan, saying he hadn't seen it reported anywhere. He also noted that authorities don't need to spend on helicopters; instead, they can use three or four drones to increase their field of vision, cover the premises, and monitor what's happening.

"We know that the TSA rarely passes muster when put to the test," David Grasso, a Republican strategist and founder and CEO of Bold TV , told The Center Square via email. "In an era of political polarization, we need federal agencies that modernize their processes to effectively neutralize threats whenever possible. Regardless of who heads the incoming administration, federal agencies that oversee our personal safety clearly need more resources to do better."

Kazakian said it's challenging to draw conclusions on federal agencies broadly based on one incident. However, that doesn't absolve agencies' responsibilities for carrying out their missions.

"While you cannot draw conclusions on other government agencies from this instance, which is very unique, we need to ensure that those in charge of protecting Americans are not reactive but proactive and staying ahead of potential risks with technology and some level-headed thinking," Kazakian said. "Our country's approach has become very reactive, and that complacency doesn't work anymore because the nature of security threats has changed.

"Right now, this doesn't appear to be an attack by anyone other than a lone, possibly disturbed, individual," Kazakian added. "You can bet that all those in charge of both the Republican and Democratic conventions are reviewing every detail of their security plans for potential weaknesses that can be exploited by one of these people. Let's hope this is a lesson learned and not one that will be repeated."