Hawley calls for congressional investigation into security flaws in Trump assassination attempt | KCUR

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley is calling for a congressional investigation into an assassination attempt that injured former President Donald Trump and killed at least one person at a rally about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.

Hawley’s call for Senate committee hearings and full transparency regarding the shooting came at a time when politicians from across Missouri’s political spectrum condemned the assassination of Trump.

“We need to understand: How could this happen? How could he get up there? Why did it take so long to act?” Hawley said Sunday in an interview with St. Louis Public Radio. “I don’t have the answers to any of these questions. And I don’t have any speculation. But I want the facts.”

Trump was giving a speech in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday afternoon when a man FBI officials identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire. Trump suffered an ear injury. At least one attendee died and two others were seriously injured. A Secret Service sniper killed Crooks, according to CBS News.

On Sunday morning, Hawley sent a letter to Democratic Senator Gary Peters of Michigan, who chairs the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Republican lawmaker wrote: “While we do not know all the facts, what little we do know points to a horrifying security failure.” He called for a “full, public and comprehensive committee investigation” that would include sworn testimony from Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.

The House Oversight Committee announced Saturday evening that it had launched an investigation into the shooting.

“We’ve seen this before, with assassinations and attempted assassinations. And unfortunately there is a pattern to these things,” Hawley said on Sunday. “Often government officials hide information. They downplay it. They hide it from the public. That cannot be allowed to happen. Under these circumstances, the American people have a right to know the full truth. And we need to find out what happened here and why.”

Hawley also said it was important to disclose all information about Crooks, adding that he did not want a repeat of what happened in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy – or, more recently, how a manifesto written by the assassin at a Christian school in Nashville was not made public.

“We just need a full and public disclosure,” Hawley said. “I want to be able to say we found out who he was, why he acted, how the breach occurred, and the public knows everything,” he said. “I don’t want to talk about this 20 years from now and say, ‘The Department of Justice never really got to the bottom of this and never really told us what happened.’ That’s just not acceptable.”

Brian Munoz

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St. Louis Public Radio

Reactions to the attack

The shooting sparked a flood of messages from both parties, with members of Missouri and Illinois’ congressional delegations condemning the violence and expressing condolences for Trump and the others killed and injured Saturday.

“The president is very lucky to be alive,” Hawley said. “Of course, an innocent bystander is dead. Others are very seriously injured. Even more were grazed by bullets. And that is unbelievable. This was an attempted murder and an attempted mass murder. And we need to find out how this happened.”

Hawley said he spoke with Trump Saturday morning before the rally about the upcoming Republican convention in Milwaukee, which begins Monday, and who Trump might choose as his vice presidential running mate.

Missouri Democratic Party Chairman Russ Carnahan said in a statement that “violent political acts and rhetoric have no place in America” ​​and that “now is the time for leaders of all parties to be determined to bridge our deep and dangerous divisions.”

Democratic Congresswoman Cori Bush of St. Louis County said in a statement on X that “we must always collectively condemn political violence.”

“I mourn the loss of life and pray for the families of the victims,” ​​said Bush, Democrat of St. Louis County. “I hope for a full recovery for all those injured today in Butler, Pennsylvania.”

U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, both Democrats from Illinois, also condemned the shooting. Durbin said in a statement that “political violence is never acceptable,” adding that he “sends my deepest gratitude to law enforcement for helping to ensure the safety of those in attendance.” Duckworth added: “There is absolutely no excuse – and no place whatsoever – for violence in American politics.”

“And those responsible must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Duckworth wrote on X.

Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt said in a statement Saturday that he was praying “for President Trump and everyone who attended the rally, including the family and loved ones of the innocent participant who was reportedly shot.”

“It’s an absolutely horrific scene in Pennsylvania,” said Schmitt, Republican of Missouri. “The Secret Service should be commended for its quick response and courage in the face of danger. God bless President Trump and God bless the United States of America.”

Republican Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-St. Elizabeth) said in a statement on social media platform X that the shooting was “a despicable and cowardly act of violence that underscores the severity of the threats our politicians face.” And Republican Congressman Mark Alford of Cass County, Missouri, echoed Hawley’s call for an investigation.

“The American people deserve answers – from the Secret Service, the FBI and others,” Alford wrote on X. “How could this horrific security failure have happened?”

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