Wisconsin GOP Sen. Ron Johnson said he has no confidence in Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and made baseless claims that the shortcomings in security preparation ahead of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump may be attributed to diversity and inclusion initiatives at the agency.
Asked in an interview with Washington Post Live on Wednesday if he has any confidence in Cheatle, Johnson said “absolutely not” before questioning whether the agency was “more concerned about DEI than protecting … President Trump.”
Trump actually praised officers who were on his detail the day of the attempted assassination.
“There are certainly reports and, you know, there’s a lot of evidence that this would be true, that Director Cheatle was far more concerned about DEI than protecting, for example, President Trump,” Johnson claimed, without offering any proof about the allegation.
Johnson’s comments as some conservatives have singled out female Secret Service officers assigned to Trump’s security detail on Saturday as being at fault for failing to prevent the shooting that left Trump and two others injured and a rally attendee dead.
Asked if he believes Trump bears any responsibility for the current political climate following the shooting, Johnson said Trump’s behavior and rhetoric has been dictated by how Democrats and the media have acted towards Trump, pointing to the allegations Trump colluded with Russian intelligence officials to improperly influence the 2016 election as an example.
“Your behavior is dictated by how you’re treated. Let’s treat each other with respect, and maybe everybody’s behavior can change,” Johnson said.
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