August 2024. Blues Vol 40 No.8

GUEST COMENTARY Samantha

GUEST COMENTARY Samantha Horwitz Worthy of Trust and Confidence? You Put Him on the X! We took our positions on the stage. I was on assigned stage right. My detail partners took their positions. One stage left and the other two mimicking our positions in the rear of the stage. The crowd was set. Our job was to scan the crowd ensuring the safety of our protectee. He stepped to the podium when I saw it. The muzzle was barely visible in between two people in the crowd. “Gun!” I yelled as I drew my weapon, pointed it straight at the shooter, and pressed the trigger as the crowd ducked around him. The other agents immediately shielded the protectee and then evacuated him off the stage. The crowd continued to disburse around the downed shooter. Sound familiar? Welcome to one of the training scenarios of the United States Secret Service. One that I and my fellow special agents in training drilled constantly and picked apart incessantly in our after-action debriefs. We always wanted to be better, to do better. The United States Secret Service has a ZERO Fail Mission. It is the highest bar set in law 32 The Blues - August ‘24 enforcement for good reason –People’s lives are at stake. On Saturday July 13th, the United States Secret Service failed its mission to protect President Trump. Not because of the actions of his detail, although they performed poorly, but the failure to secure the scene prior to President Trump even taking the stage. Being a United States Secret Service agent means playing the ultimate team sport. Whether assigned to a detail, an advance team, the ID team, now called protective intelligence, the CAT Team (Counter Assault Team), our roles are clearly defined, and we know exactly what our mission is on any given day. Site advance work means long hours and meticulous planning. Every detail of the venue and its vulnerabilities considered. Those vulnerabilities dictate the number of agents, and local assets requested and assigned. On July 13th I did not recognize the Secret Service I worked for. A building with a direct line of sight to any protectee would never be considered out of the zone of protection nor would it be left without several local and / or Secret Service assets posted around it, or on top of it. If this had been done Crooks, the shooter, never would have had an opportunity to get on that roof. Additionally, Crooks was deemed “suspicious” and captured on video at least thirty minutes before President Trump took the stage and before he was seen on the roof. Under the Secret Service I worked for, he would have been located, approached, and questioned. While this was occurring, President Trump would have been briefed and he never gets on that stage until the site was secured. If you watched the testimony former United States Secret Service Director Cheatle provided to Congress, you would have noticed that she was less than forthcoming in her responses and in some instances she outright lied. While we are far from knowing all the facts, every agent and law enforcement asset who was present at the rally on July 13th must provide a sworn account for their actions. It is a crime scene, Corey Comperatore was murdered, and two others shot. We have a disgraced United States Se-

cret Service, not worthy of our trust and confidence right now. I am not painting every single agent with a broad brush based on what the world witnessed. There are amazing men and women who are ready, willing, and able to execute their sworn duty. The American people must understand that ultimately, because of the horrific events of July 13th, our safety and security is at risk. The Department of Homeland Security is compromised because Secretary Mayorkas is negligent in his duties as an appointed leader. He is responsible for much more than how the United States Secret Service operates. He is responsible for public security which includes terrorist threats, border security, cyber threats, disaster prevention and management, and immigration and customs. From everything we know so far, it is a fair assumption that he has appointed people to provide for our safety and security who are apathetic and who are concerned more about DEI than doing what is best for America. Kimberly Cheatle resigned, and it is time we called for Secretary Mayorkas to do the same. Samantha Horwitz is a regular contributor to The Blues Police Magazine. She is a former United States Secret Service Agent and local law enforcement officer. She is the co-founder of A Badge of Honor, a 501(c)(3), non-profit that provides wellness and resiliency programs for first responders. Sam is the co-host A Badge of Honor Podcast, powered by the OBBM network, which airs live every Monday at 5pm CST. For more visit ABadgeofHonor.org. The Blues - August ‘24 33