A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, is stepping down. Her resignation comes 10 days after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. NPR justice correspondent Ryan Lucas is covering this. Ryan, that House Oversight Committee yesterday pressed her pretty hard. Was her resignation maybe expected at this point?
RYAN LUCAS, BYLINE: Well, there had certainly been a lot of pressure on Cheatle to step down after the attempted assassination of former President Trump at that rally in Butler, Pa., on July 13, just 10 days ago. Cheatle testified, as you noted yesterday, before House lawmakers. And she described that assassination attempt as her agency's biggest operational failure in decades. She also said this.
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KIMBERLY CHEATLE: The Secret Service's solemn mission is to protect our nation's leaders. On July 13, we failed. As the director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse of our agency.
LUCAS: So you hear there acknowledging that this was a massive failure on the Secret Service's part and that she, as the director, was ultimately responsible. But she also told lawmakers yesterday that she wasn't going to step down. She said she believed she was the best person for the job. But that was 24 hours ago, and a lot can change in 24 hours.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah, sure can. What changed?
LUCAS: Well, she had been under pressure because there hadn't been an assassination attempt like the one on Trump since the shooting of President Reagan more than 40 years ago. This happened here against Trump on her watch. And she certainly did not do herself any favors in her testimony yesterday. She evaded answering basic fundamental questions from lawmakers about what went wrong on July 13. She refused to answer the question that is on everyone's mind, which is, how was the gunman able to get on a roof with a clear line of sight on Trump and get shots off?
Her lack of answers enraged lawmakers. There were several members of Congress who during the hearing told her that they previously were not calling for her resignation, but now, in light of what she was telling them or not telling them, had changed their minds and said she had to go. The top Republican and Democrat on the House Oversight Committee sent a joint letter last night saying she had lost the public's confidence, and she needed to step down. And then last night, a motion was filed in the House to impeach Cheatle. It was a motion that would have forced a vote on impeachment within 48 hours. So it was clear that pressure on her to step aside was not going to fade away. And ultimately, it was untenable for her to try to hold on.
MARTÍNEZ: Now, this news is pretty fresh, but has there been any reaction from lawmakers yet?
LUCAS: Yes, there has. The chairman of the House Oversight Committee, James Comer, welcomed Cheatle's decision to step down. Comer said that her testimony yesterday instilled zero confidence in Cheatle's ability to lead the Secret Service and confidence that it can continue to protect the nation's leaders. He also said that this is a step in the right direction when it comes to accountability, but he said there still needs to be a full review of the security failures in order to prevent something like July 13 from happening. And again, House Speaker Mike Johnson also welcomed Cheatle's resignation but said it should have happened days ago.
MARTÍNEZ: And really quick - anything from the White House?
LUCAS: Well, President Biden released a statement thanking Cheatle for her decades of service. It is worth noting here that Cheatle worked almost three decades for the Secret Service, rising up through the ranks over the years before ultimately taking over the agency in the Biden administration. The president also said that his independent review, the one that he ordered up with a panel of outside experts, will get to the bottom of what went wrong on July 13. And he also said he plans to appoint a new director for the Secret Service soon.
MARTÍNEZ: NPR's justice correspondent Ryan Lucas. Ryan, thanks.
LUCAS: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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