Kimberly Chitell, the director of the U.S. Secret Service, submitted her resignation today, Tuesday, following an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. Current President Joe Biden quickly announced plans to appoint a new director for the Secret Service soon. Chitell sent a message to agency employees stating, "I have made the difficult decision to resign with a heavy heart. I accept full responsibility for the security breach," according to the Washington Post. The Washington Post reported that Secret Service officials stated, "Chitell's handling of the assassination attempt on Trump led to a loss of support for her leadership within the agency."
House Speaker Mike Johnson commented, "I’m pleased to see the Secret Service director responding to the call from both Republicans and Democrats to resign." He added, "The resignation of the Secret Service director was overdue, and she should have done it at least a week ago." The chair of the House Oversight Committee noted that "the Secret Service cannot fail, but it has under Chitell," pointing out that "grave security failures led to the assassination attempt on Trump." He continued, "The hearing resulted in the resignation of the Secret Service director, and there will be accountability in the future." Republican lawmakers stated that Chitell should be summoned to Congress even after her resignation to provide answers about what happened. Trump stated that "Biden and Harris failed to provide adequate protection for me, and I was shot at for the sake of democracy."
