Florida Sen. Rick Scott (R), one of former President Trump’s closest allies in the Senate, called on the Biden administration on Wednesday to deliver daily briefings on its investigation into the shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania , on the weekend.
“The security of our Republic is being questioned. The Biden administration cannot wait until the investigation is complete to release details. It needs to start today,” Scott said in a statement.
He said it is “imperative” that FBI Director Christopher Wray, U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas “hold a daily public press briefing to share updates with the American people and answer questions about what happened, who is being held accountable and how we ensure this never happens again.”
He issued his statement shortly after Wray, Cheatle and other FBI and Secret Service officials briefed all senators Wednesday afternoon on their investigations.
Other Republican senators expressed deep dissatisfaction with the Secret Service’s failure to intercept the shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, before he fired several shots, grazing Trump, killing one rally attendee and seriously wounding two others.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called for Cheatle to be replaced as head of the Secret Service.
“The near-assassination of former President Trump last week was a serious attack on American democracy. The nation deserves answers and accountability. New leadership at the Secret Service would be an important step in that direction,” he said in a statement posted on social media.
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) called the briefing “incredibly uninformative” and immediately submitted a list of follow-up questions to the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI.
He asked Biden administration officials to describe the size of the security perimeter set at Butler’s rally, the total number of FBI employees involved in security preparations for the rally, and the total number of state troopers and police officers who worked on security at the rally. local. .
He also asked for a detailed list of countermeasures equipment used at the rally and a description of the screening procedures used.
Both Scott and Johnson are members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
