Show-Me State Times

On July 25, 2024, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a follow-up letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, demanding his agency turn over all records concerning the United States Secret Service’s (USSS) availability or use of drones during former President Donald Trump’s July 13 rally.

Senator Hawley’s letter follows new whistleblower claims alleging that USSS officers at the rally refused to deploy drones—the same technology President Trump’s attempted assassin used to gauge his shots at the former president—to secure the rally before it began.

“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,” Senator Hawley wrote.

His letter also states that, according to the whistleblower, USSS then “changed course” and “asked the local partner to deploy the drone technology to surveil the site,” but only in the aftermath of the attack.

Senator Hawley has been a leading voice demanding accountability for USSS’ security measures on July 13.

Earlier this week, Senator Hawley sent a separate letter to Secretary Mayorkas demanding answers after other whistleblower allegations suggested law enforcement officers assigned to the roof of the building from which the attempted assassin shot abandoned their post due to heat.

Last week, Senator Hawley traveled to Butler, PA—the site of the assassination attempt against President Trump—before now-former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle visited it herself.

The full text of Senator Hawley's letter is as follows:

July 25, 2024

The Honorable Alejandro Mayorkas Secretary

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

2707 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave SE

Washington, D.C. 20528

Dear Secretary Mayorkas,

Since I last wrote to you on July 22, my office has received new whistleblower allegations that further call into question your department’s preparations. The American people deserve answers about your historic failure to protect former President Trump on July 13, 2024.

According to reports, the shooter used a drone to survey the site in preparation for his attack. This was confirmed by FBI Director Christopher Wray in his testimony just yesterday. In fact, he confirmed that the shooter was operating the drone approximately two hours before President Trump took the stage in Butler, Pennsylvania.

This raises an obvious question: why was the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) not using its own drones?

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 drone technology in response.

It is hard to understand why USSS would decline using drones when they were offered them, particularly given that USSS permitted an overflight by an unauthorized drone mere hours before event commencement. The failure is more concerning since these drones had capabilities not only for identifying active shooters but also for neutralizing them.

So Congress can continue its investigation, please provide no later than seven days from now all records and communications concerning drone availability or use at Trump's July 13 rally in Butler, PA. You must also testify before Congress next week about these security failures by your department.

Sincerely,

Josh Hawley

United States Senator