USA US Presidential Elections 2024

Bogeyman 

Experienced member
Professional
Messages
8,958
Reactions
64 30,748
Website
twitter.com
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey

Secret Service ramped up security after receiving intel of Iranian plot to assassinate Trump; no known connection to shooting​



US authorities obtained intelligence from a human source in recent weeks on a plot by Iran to try to assassinate Donald Trump, a development that led to the Secret Service increasing security around the former president in recent weeks, multiple people briefed on the matter told CNN.

There’s no indication that Thomas Matthew Crooks, the would-be assassin who attempted to kill the former president on Saturday, was connected to the plot, the sources said.

The existence of the intelligence threat from a hostile foreign intelligence agency — and the enhanced security for Trump — raises new questions about the security lapses at the Saturday rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and how a 20-year-old man managed to access a nearby rooftop to fire shots that injured the former president.

It’s not clear whether the specifics of the Iran threat were shared with the Trump campaign, which said in a statement: “We do not comment on President Trump’s security detail. All questions should be directed to The United States Secret Service.”

The Secret Service recently “added protective resources and capabilities to the former President’s security detail,” agency spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement on Sunday.

Secret Service officials have warned the Trump campaign repeatedly against holding outdoor rallies, which pose greater risks than events to which the agency can better control access, people briefed on the matter said. The warnings have been more general in nature, the sources said.

At one point during this election cycle, the campaign stopped holding spontaneous off-the-record events where guests weren’t swept by Secret Service beforehand due to security concerns, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

The FBI, which is conducting the investigation into Saturday’s shooting, declined to comment.

CNN has requested comment from the Department of Homeland Security and the Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations.

Iran has repeatedly vowed revenge for the US military’s killing of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian military’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in January 2020. And former senior Trump administration officials who worked on national security have had tight security since leaving the government.

In August 2022, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against a member of the IRGC for allegedly trying to orchestrate the assassination of John Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser. US prosecutors said the plot against Bolton was “likely in retaliation” for Soleimani’s assassination.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also a target of the Iranian assassination plot, according to a federal law enforcement source familiar with the investigation and a source close to Pompeo.

For months, law enforcement officials have been concerned about the persistent threat of Iran potentially attempting to assassinate former Trump officials and the former president himself, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. But the recent intelligence suggested a significant uptick in the threat, the sources told CNN.

Warnings about that operational planning have coincided with a noticeable surge of online messaging from Iranian accounts and state-backed media mentioning Trump, which has raised security concerns among US officials, one of the sources told CNN.



@Kartal1 @TR_123456 @Sanchez @Yasar_TR @Zafer @Gary @Afif @Nilgiri
 

Heartbang

Experienced member
Messages
2,479
Reactions
8 3,826
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey

Secret Service ramped up security after receiving intel of Iranian plot to assassinate Trump; no known connection to shooting​



US authorities obtained intelligence from a human source in recent weeks on a plot by Iran to try to assassinate Donald Trump, a development that led to the Secret Service increasing security around the former president in recent weeks, multiple people briefed on the matter told CNN.

There’s no indication that Thomas Matthew Crooks, the would-be assassin who attempted to kill the former president on Saturday, was connected to the plot, the sources said.

The existence of the intelligence threat from a hostile foreign intelligence agency — and the enhanced security for Trump — raises new questions about the security lapses at the Saturday rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and how a 20-year-old man managed to access a nearby rooftop to fire shots that injured the former president.

It’s not clear whether the specifics of the Iran threat were shared with the Trump campaign, which said in a statement: “We do not comment on President Trump’s security detail. All questions should be directed to The United States Secret Service.”

The Secret Service recently “added protective resources and capabilities to the former President’s security detail,” agency spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement on Sunday.

Secret Service officials have warned the Trump campaign repeatedly against holding outdoor rallies, which pose greater risks than events to which the agency can better control access, people briefed on the matter said. The warnings have been more general in nature, the sources said.

At one point during this election cycle, the campaign stopped holding spontaneous off-the-record events where guests weren’t swept by Secret Service beforehand due to security concerns, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

The FBI, which is conducting the investigation into Saturday’s shooting, declined to comment.

CNN has requested comment from the Department of Homeland Security and the Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations.

Iran has repeatedly vowed revenge for the US military’s killing of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian military’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in January 2020. And former senior Trump administration officials who worked on national security have had tight security since leaving the government.

In August 2022, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against a member of the IRGC for allegedly trying to orchestrate the assassination of John Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser. US prosecutors said the plot against Bolton was “likely in retaliation” for Soleimani’s assassination.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also a target of the Iranian assassination plot, according to a federal law enforcement source familiar with the investigation and a source close to Pompeo.

For months, law enforcement officials have been concerned about the persistent threat of Iran potentially attempting to assassinate former Trump officials and the former president himself, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. But the recent intelligence suggested a significant uptick in the threat, the sources told CNN.

Warnings about that operational planning have coincided with a noticeable surge of online messaging from Iranian accounts and state-backed media mentioning Trump, which has raised security concerns among US officials, one of the sources told CNN.



@Kartal1 @TR_123456 @Sanchez @Yasar_TR @Zafer @Gary @Afif @Nilgiri
Consider me a skeptic.
This sounds like an effort for "pre-bunking" for another attempt.
 

Bogeyman 

Experienced member
Professional
Messages
8,958
Reactions
64 30,748
Website
twitter.com
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey

Secret Service ramped up security after receiving intel of Iranian plot to assassinate Trump; no known connection to shooting​



US authorities obtained intelligence from a human source in recent weeks on a plot by Iran to try to assassinate Donald Trump, a development that led to the Secret Service increasing security around the former president in recent weeks, multiple people briefed on the matter told CNN.

There’s no indication that Thomas Matthew Crooks, the would-be assassin who attempted to kill the former president on Saturday, was connected to the plot, the sources said.

The existence of the intelligence threat from a hostile foreign intelligence agency — and the enhanced security for Trump — raises new questions about the security lapses at the Saturday rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and how a 20-year-old man managed to access a nearby rooftop to fire shots that injured the former president.

It’s not clear whether the specifics of the Iran threat were shared with the Trump campaign, which said in a statement: “We do not comment on President Trump’s security detail. All questions should be directed to The United States Secret Service.”

The Secret Service recently “added protective resources and capabilities to the former President’s security detail,” agency spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement on Sunday.

Secret Service officials have warned the Trump campaign repeatedly against holding outdoor rallies, which pose greater risks than events to which the agency can better control access, people briefed on the matter said. The warnings have been more general in nature, the sources said.

At one point during this election cycle, the campaign stopped holding spontaneous off-the-record events where guests weren’t swept by Secret Service beforehand due to security concerns, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

The FBI, which is conducting the investigation into Saturday’s shooting, declined to comment.

CNN has requested comment from the Department of Homeland Security and the Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations.

Iran has repeatedly vowed revenge for the US military’s killing of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian military’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in January 2020. And former senior Trump administration officials who worked on national security have had tight security since leaving the government.

In August 2022, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against a member of the IRGC for allegedly trying to orchestrate the assassination of John Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser. US prosecutors said the plot against Bolton was “likely in retaliation” for Soleimani’s assassination.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also a target of the Iranian assassination plot, according to a federal law enforcement source familiar with the investigation and a source close to Pompeo.

For months, law enforcement officials have been concerned about the persistent threat of Iran potentially attempting to assassinate former Trump officials and the former president himself, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. But the recent intelligence suggested a significant uptick in the threat, the sources told CNN.

Warnings about that operational planning have coincided with a noticeable surge of online messaging from Iranian accounts and state-backed media mentioning Trump, which has raised security concerns among US officials, one of the sources told CNN.



@Kartal1 @TR_123456 @Sanchez @Yasar_TR @Zafer @Gary @Afif @Nilgiri
True or not, but the number of people who want to see Trump in a coffin is increasing day by day. That is a fact.
 

Hari Sud

Active member
Messages
47
Reactions
1 25
Nation of residence
Canada
Nation of origin
India
American elections have been thrown into turmoil.

At a rally in Pennsylvania, eight random shots were fired, with one bullet grazing the ear of Republican Party presidential candidate Donald Trump. This incident has significantly impacted the upcoming U.S. elections. The undecided voters will soon make their decision, and the sympathy vote is likely to favor Donald Trump. In contrast, Democratic candidate and current President Joe Biden, who is often perceived as not fully in control due to his age, may lose some support.

It’s not just sympathy votes that might sway the election in Trump's favor. Joe Biden’s age and frequent public gaffes may further harm his candidacy. Under the pressure of public scrutiny, Biden’s mistakes could become more apparent.

Biden’s presidency has faced numerous challenges, not least of which is the January 6th, 2020, incident at the Capitol, which was portrayed as an insurrection but was essentially a public demonstration by Trump supporters that got out of hand. The Democrats’ decision to prosecute Trump resulted in mixed outcomes, inadvertently increasing his popularity.

Additionally, Biden’s decision to engage Russia through Ukraine has been controversial. Offering NATO membership to Ukraine provoked Russia, leading to an unnecessary war that has devastated Ukraine. The conflict has strained relations within NATO and impacted Europe's energy supplies, while benefiting U.S. arms manufacturers.

Biden also sparked diplomatic tensions with India over its oil imports from Russia. Instead of offering competitive oil prices, the U.S. criticized India, leading to strained relations and complications such as the Pannu Issue and delays in supplying GE-404 jet engines to India. U.S. Ambassador Eric Garcetti, a Democrat, has contributed to these tensions with his frequent criticisms of India.

Although some pessimistic writers foresee a divisive America, this is not the case. American democracy is resilient, having withstood significant challenges such as the Kennedy assassination, the Reagan shooting, and other incidents. It will overcome the current challenges as well, likely resulting in the election of a new administration.

There is a widespread desire for the war with Russia in Europe to end. Europe is already facing pressure from right-wing movements due to unchecked Muslim immigration and the ongoing war. It will be difficult for the current Biden administration to end the conflict, but a new leader and administration could bring the change needed to resolve it.

Additionally, issues such as gun control, abortion, and immigration from the Mexico-U.S. border have not been effectively addressed by the current administration. A stronger, different leadership is needed to tackle these challenges.

Economically, the U.S. is doing well, partly due to the temporary boost from the Ukraine war. However, the major challenge lies in breaking China's stranglehold over the American and European consumer goods and supply chain markets. China has become increasingly belligerent, especially in the Taiwan Strait, thanks to its accumulation of American dollars. Diversifying product imports and reducing the flow of American cash to China are essential.

These and other political issues await resolution by a new administration.
 

Kartal1

Experienced member
Lead Moderator
Messages
4,755
Reactions
85 17,720
Nation of residence
Bulgaria
Nation of origin
Turkey
Here again, those who want Trump dead are flocking to him. The US killed Qasem Soleimani and then Ibrahim Raisi. I don't understand why you took this so lightly.
If such an attempt is organized by a foreign service or any kind of significant organization, the relevant services most probably already know.

Personal protection services of important statesmen in all of the countries around the world are the best informed services within their area of responsibility. They receive a fusion of intelligence reports gathered by all the possible intelligence gathering assets including national and partner services. Other than that most of them have a limited intelligence gathering capability which is assisted with the ability to request basically anything from a relevant service which could be CIA, FBI, NSA or whatever other service the need dictates when it comes to the US.

If there is a plot, especially by a foreign service I think the US already works on the case as we saw with the alleged IRGC operative. This is indeed something big as you described it, but it is not a precedent. Similar plots are uncovered probably on monthly, even weekly basis, but the big news are that foreign service participates.

My humble opinion is that the biggest threat to any US statesmen comes from within the US itself. Highly polarized society, little to no gun control, mental illness rate and fanaticism are among the biggest factors that pose a threat to the security of these VIPs. I think the biggest threat to the US statesmen comes from the lone wolves who take the decision spontaneously and by some chance manage to keep the Secret Service field teams off guard.

In the nature of every successful VIP protection service lies one principle, "The Best Measure is the Preventive Measure". All of the work of these services from the analytical, surveillance to the personal protection (bodyguard) teams on the field is done within this principle. If we see an armed men running to attack the VIP or as in the latest case, open fire from a distance, but the service managed to neutralize the threat fast enough and evacuate its VIP unharmed, this doesn't mean that the job of the protection service is a success. In the most cases where the situation is so out of control so an armed men have the chance to aim at the VIP, even if you have the best warfighters, personal protection guards, or even a Terminator on your disposal, maybe 75% of the success in this hit is tied to the professionalism of the attacker and an unknown percentage of luck (my own estimation). The percentages we are talking about are not something that a VIP protection service can rely upon, especially when the US President or any other statesmen of a similar importance is on the stake. In this particular case my assessment is that the security measures at the event were not properly implemented and we can probably talk about a lack of intelligence, but we can't say for sure about that last one until we know if the attacker was previously taking place in a watch list.

Billions of dollars in budget are annually provided for the intelligence community to keep a track on these things. We don't know exactly how many millions of people are "victims" of the US mass surveillance programs inside the US and abroad. The US is not playing a game when it comes to intelligence and it is something close to the impossible to organize such an attack where more than 5 people know about, inside the HQ of the IRGC and it gets unnoticed by the CIA or later this plot is not detected by another relevant service. Lone wolf attacker with a clear background that was not hooked onto a surveillance program would be very different case tho. In this case the organization of the event and specific security measures play the biggest role as making your VIP wear a body armor and your surveillance teams having the angle so they can cover their sectors of responsibility in the best ways possible.

Interesting fact:

Not connected to this specific case, but I would like to say that President Erdogan is one of the best defended presidents in the world. The amount of work around the planning of one of his events is just insane.

One of the biggest factors in the successful work of the Turkish Presidential Protection Department apart from the usage of the highest technology by this service is the input of one man named Sukru Cukurlu. Sukru Cukurlu is the man who established the CAT, Counter-Attack Teams of the current presidential protection service. He also established the close protection service on presidential level which is the ancestor of the Turkish Presidential Protection Department. In 1993 he took a bullet destined at President Suleyman Demirel. He was sent on oversea special training in the US Secret Service and FBI. In 2011 he was requested by the US Government and departed for the US where he provided training to the FBI. He managed to create a fusion between the best US and Israeli practices in the field and is also a man who contributed the most for the establishment of the Turkish "style" of doing this job. He is currently one dangerous old man :)

1721173466535.png
 

Afif

Experienced member
Moderator
Bangladesh Correspondent
DefenceHub Diplomat
Bangladesh Moderator
Messages
4,408
Reactions
69 8,189
Nation of residence
Bangladesh
Nation of origin
Bangladesh
If such an attempt is organized by a foreign service or any kind of significant organization, the relevant services most probably already know.

Personal protection services of important statesmen in all of the countries around the world are the best informed services within their area of responsibility. They receive a fusion of intelligence reports gathered by all the possible intelligence gathering assets including national and partner services. Other than that most of them have a limited intelligence gathering capability which is assisted with the ability to request basically anything from a relevant service which could be CIA, FBI, NSA or whatever other service the need dictates when it comes to the US.

If there is a plot, especially by a foreign service I think the US already works on the case as we saw with the alleged IRGC operative. This is indeed something big as you described it, but it is not a precedent. Similar plots are uncovered probably on monthly, even weekly basis, but the big news are that foreign service participates.

My humble opinion is that the biggest threat to any US statesmen comes from within the US itself. Highly polarized society, little to no gun control, mental illness rate and fanaticism are among the biggest factors that pose a threat to the security of these VIPs. I think the biggest threat to the US statesmen comes from the lone wolves who take the decision spontaneously and by some chance manage to keep the Secret Service field teams off guard.

In the nature of every successful VIP protection service lies one principle, "The Best Measure is the Preventive Measure". All of the work of these services from the analytical, surveillance to the personal protection (bodyguard) teams on the field is done within this principle. If we see an armed men running to attack the VIP or as in the latest case, open fire from a distance, but the service managed to neutralize the threat fast enough and evacuate its VIP unharmed, this doesn't mean that the job of the protection service is a success. In the most cases where the situation is so out of control so an armed men have the chance to aim at the VIP, even if you have the best warfighters, personal protection guards, or even a Terminator on your disposal, maybe 75% of the success in this hit is tied to the professionalism of the attacker and an unknown percentage of luck (my own estimation). The percentages we are talking about are not something that a VIP protection service can rely upon, especially when the US President or any other statesmen of a similar importance is on the stake. In this particular case my assessment is that the security measures at the event were not properly implemented and we can probably talk about a lack of intelligence, but we can't say for sure about that last one until we know if the attacker was previously taking place in a watch list.

Billions of dollars in budget are annually provided for the intelligence community to keep a track on these things. We don't know exactly how many millions of people are "victims" of the US mass surveillance programs inside the US and abroad. The US is not playing a game when it comes to intelligence and it is something close to the impossible to organize such an attack where more than 5 people know about, inside the HQ of the IRGC and it gets unnoticed by the CIA or later this plot is not detected by another relevant service. Lone wolf attacker with a clear background that was not hooked onto a surveillance program would be very different case tho. In this case the organization of the event and specific security measures play the biggest role as making your VIP wear a body armor and your surveillance teams having the angle so they can cover their sectors of responsibility in the best ways possible.

Great post but I would like to disagree here.

IMO, it is possible for a decent intelligence agency (no need to be top tier) to silently organize successful assassinations against world leaders. It's a deterrence factor that's keeping the states from acting in such way. The same reason countries don't fight James Bond style intelligence war. There is almost no way to keep the trail hidden in aftermath. And once you do something like that, there is no way to protect your own VIPs unless they all go to underground nuclear bunker for life. It would start a cycle that is incrediblely disruptive to normal state functionalities and world systems with no clear benefit for either sides. Hence why state actors does not engage in such activity.
 

Bogeyman 

Experienced member
Professional
Messages
8,958
Reactions
64 30,748
Website
twitter.com
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
Great post but I would like to disagree here.

IMO, it is possible for a decent intelligence agency (no need to be top tier) to silently organize successful assassinations against world leaders. It's a deterrence factor that's keeping the states from acting in such way. The same reason countries don't fight James Bond style intelligence war. There is almost no way to keep the trail hidden in aftermath. And once you do something like that, there is no way to protect your own VIPs unless they all go to underground nuclear bunker for life. It would start a cycle that is incrediblely disruptive to normal state functionalities and world systems with no clear benefit for either sides. Hence why state actors does not engage in such activity.
I also do not agree with the idea that there is full coordination between institutions in the US. It is known that there is a clique war especially between the FBI and CIA. Likewise, the FBI raided the case of Trump taking secret documents from the White House to his home. During these raids, it was revealed that they raided with "shoot orders" if they were prevented. So I would not be surprised if those with authority within the FBI wanted to see Trump die.
 

Rooxbar

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
Messages
489
Reactions
43 1,550
Nation of residence
Nethelands
Nation of origin
Turkey

Woland

Committed member
Moderator
Ukraine Moderator
Messages
171
Reactions
4 564
Nation of residence
United States of America
Nation of origin
Ukraine
The Republican party of today can be divided into four groups. People are certainly more complex than four categories, but like most categorizations the purpose here is to simplify a complex dynamic to make it easier to understand and draw conclusions.

  1. Grifters. Trump, Murdochs, Elon Musk, Vivek, Roger Stone, RFK, Matt Gaetz, MTG, Alex Jones. These people are not ideological and their primary purpose is personal empowerment or enrichment. They’re hardcore opportunists whose positions are easily swayed by personal interests. Easy prey for Russian operations.
  2. Yarvinists. JD Vance, Peter Thiel, Tucker Carlson, Steve Bannon, Blake Masters. Inspired by the writings of ~Curtis Yarvin~, a neo-monarchist who sees liberalism as having brainwashed the masses, and who wants to enact a technocratic libertarianism where most things are allowed except political participation, which is reserved for a select few. A Dugin for the non-Christian American right. Yarvinists do not like Trump or his scammers, but see them as their easiest pathway to power. They are smarter, younger, and very ideological. They espouse personal freedom and capitalism, but not democracy.
  3. Christian Fundamentalists. Mike Johnson, Josh Hawley, Samuel Alito. These people are willing to accept Trump as a flawed man but a divine instrument capable of creating a more conservative society. Highly ideological, backed by the many Baptist, Evangelical and Catholic leaders and their congregations. View the currently 6 Catholic Supreme Court justices as their greatest achievement.
  4. Old guard. Mitt Romney, Liz Cheney, Mitch McConell, Nikki Haley. Traditional Republicans, many of whom have concluded their best hope is to work with Trump to take the country in the right direction.
 

Kartal1

Experienced member
Lead Moderator
Messages
4,755
Reactions
85 17,720
Nation of residence
Bulgaria
Nation of origin
Turkey
Can you imagine... The USSS was overstretched to the point where they couldn't properly secure a perimeter and had to give the responsibility for this building to the law enforcements. And this happens after the Trump security detail was reinforced in result of an official request by his security team to raise security. According to sources this is the only time during the campaign that Trump received two counter-sniper teams instead of one and this eventually saved his life. Especially for this events the Trump security detail was also reinforced with two CAT (Counter Assault Team) teams which are not usually part of his protection team. In reality they needed more, but in result of manpower problems and budget restrictions they couldn't sent more. In order to assist CAT, the Pennsylvania State Police SWAT was present on the scene filling roles.

When it comes to the building from which the attacker shoot at Trump an interesting detail is that, there was a Penssylvania SWAT QRF team and snipers positioned in the building on the second floor. The snipers were not positioned on the roof due to the great slope which is a problem when you have to stay there for a couple of hours. The SWAT QRF team actually spotted the attacker wandering on ground level with a range finder and reported it. After this report uniformed officers were dispatched to the building in order to look at the situation, but by the time they arrive the attacker was already on the roof. A Secret Service agent and an uniformed police officer found a way to climb to the top, but after the attacker pointed his gun at them they were forced to retreat. After the attacker threatened them he immediately took prone position and opened fire at Trump. This is one of the factors for the bad accuracy of the shooter. He just didn't have enough time to complete all his preparations.

Apparently the attacker was armed with a standard AR-15 chambered in 5.56x45 paired with a non-magnified holographic sight (EO Tech). From this distance to aim for a headshot with this configuration at a moving target requires high level of professionalism and is a hard shot. The attacker shot 3 bullets at Trump with little to no preparation, but we see that God was on Trump's side in this case.

The guys we see below are one of the two counter-sniper teams of the USSS present on the scene. Contrary to what people initially thought they are not the ones that eliminated Crooks. They actually didn't have an angle to engage Crooks and their reaction after the initial opening of three shots were fired is due to the fact that they thought someone is firing at them because they heard the sonic booms. They could only observe the roof after it was reported that there is a guy on the roof, but couldn't engage with what they were presented as a target. Another factor is that they knew that there is a law enforcement team in this building.

1721254856118.png


After the three shots were fired in a rush by the attacker the second counter-sniper team we talked about identified the target and had a shot. They engaged Crooks with a suppressed SR-25 semi-automatic rifle chambered in 7.62x51 and eliminated the threat. This is why it is determined that the decision to deploy one more counter-sniper team (for the first time during the campaign) was a critical decision.

Another critical gap was that communication broke due to the lack of coordination and the implementation of the interoperable State communication mode where all the relevant services and law enforcements to the event are inter-connected at the same communication channel and unfortunately according to what I got, this was not the case.

So basically from what I get, there were a chain of events that led to this mainly sourced in the personnel and budget restriction in the US Secret Services which led to extremely small perimeter that was covered jointly by the US Secret Services and the local law enforcements, but not only that. It is also evident by what we saw during the event and the reports we get after the event that, there was also a lack of inter-service coordination and gaps from a professional point of view in the planning stage of this event.

Basically this is what I managed to gather from credible sources.
 

Afif

Experienced member
Moderator
Bangladesh Correspondent
DefenceHub Diplomat
Bangladesh Moderator
Messages
4,408
Reactions
69 8,189
Nation of residence
Bangladesh
Nation of origin
Bangladesh
Can you imagine... The USSS was overstretched to the point where they couldn't properly secure a perimeter and had to give the responsibility for this building to the law enforcements. And this happens after the Trump security detail was reinforced in result of an official request by his security team to raise security. According to sources this is the only time during the campaign that Trump received two counter-sniper teams instead of one and this eventually saved his life. Especially for this events the Trump security detail was also reinforced with two CAT (Counter Assault Team) teams which are not usually part of his protection team. In reality they needed more, but in result of manpower problems and budget restrictions they couldn't sent more. In order to assist CAT, the Pennsylvania State Police SWAT was present on the scene filling roles.

When it comes to the building from which the attacker shoot at Trump an interesting detail is that, there was a Penssylvania SWAT QRF team and snipers positioned in the building on the second floor. The snipers were not positioned on the roof due to the great slope which is a problem when you have to stay there for a couple of hours. The SWAT QRF team actually spotted the attacker wandering on ground level with a range finder and reported it. After this report uniformed officers were dispatched to the building in order to look at the situation, but by the time they arrive the attacker was already on the roof. A Secret Service agent and an uniformed police officer found a way to climb to the top, but after the attacker pointed his gun at them they were forced to retreat. After the attacker threatened them he immediately took prone position and opened fire at Trump. This is one of the factors for the bad accuracy of the shooter. He just didn't have enough time to complete all his preparations.

Apparently the attacker was armed with a standard AR-15 chambered in 5.56x45 paired with a non-magnified holographic sight (EO Tech). From this distance to aim for a headshot with this configuration at a moving target requires high level of professionalism and is a hard shot. The attacker shot 3 bullets at Trump with little to no preparation, but we see that God was on Trump's side in this case.

The guys we see below are one of the two counter-sniper teams of the USSS present on the scene. Contrary to what people initially thought they are not the ones that eliminated Crooks. They actually didn't have an angle to engage Crooks and their reaction after the initial opening of three shots were fired is due to the fact that they thought someone is firing at them because they heard the sonic booms. They could only observe the roof after it was reported that there is a guy on the roof, but couldn't engage with what they were presented as a target. Another factor is that they knew that there is a law enforcement team in this building.

View attachment 69508

After the three shots were fired in a rush by the attacker the second counter-sniper team we talked about identified the target and had a shot. They engaged Crooks with a suppressed SR-25 semi-automatic rifle chambered in 7.62x51 and eliminated the threat. This is why it is determined that the decision to deploy one more counter-sniper team (for the first time during the campaign) was a critical decision.

Another critical gap was that communication broke due to the lack of coordination and the implementation of the interoperable State communication mode where all the relevant services and law enforcements to the event are inter-connected at the same communication channel and unfortunately according to what I got, this was not the case.

So basically from what I get, there were a chain of events that led to this mainly sourced in the personnel and budget restriction in the US Secret Services which led to extremely small perimeter that was covered jointly by the US Secret Services and the local law enforcements, but not only that. It is also evident by what we saw during the event and the reports we get after the event that, there was also a lack of inter-service coordination and gaps from a professional point of view in the planning stage of this event.

Basically this is what I managed to gather from credible sources.

Great summery, but the one in the photo above is a police counter-sniper team, no?
 

Kartal1

Experienced member
Lead Moderator
Messages
4,755
Reactions
85 17,720
Nation of residence
Bulgaria
Nation of origin
Turkey
Great summery, but the one in the photo above is a police counter-sniper team, no?
Very good question put and I thank you for this so I have a chance to clarify something important regarding the US Secret Service and its units that are operating on the field.

What do we see here? Two snipers with Police tags so one may determine that they are probably State Police, but in fact they are part of the US Secret Service Uniformed Division.

1721258362082.png


The US Secret Service Uniformed Division is a the Federal Police force directly tied to the USSS.

The Uniformed Division has three branches: the White House Branch, the Foreign Missions Branch and the Naval Observatory Branch.

Together they provide protection for the following: the president, vice president, and their immediate families; presidential candidates; the White House Complex; the Vice President's Residence; the main Treasury Department building and its annex facility; and foreign diplomatic missions in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.

Officers are responsible for providing additional support to the Secret Service's protective mission through the following special support groups:

Counter Sniper Team (CS): Created in 1971, the Counter Sniper Team's purpose is to provide specialized protective support to defend against long-range threats to Secret Service protectees.

Canine Explosives Detection Unit (K-9): Created in 1976, the mission of the K-9 unit is to provide skilled and specialized explosives detection support to protective efforts involving Secret Service protectees.

Emergency Response Team (ERT): Formed in 1992, ERT's primary mission is to provide tactical response to unlawful intrusions and other protective challenges related to the White House and its grounds. ERT personnel receive specialized, advanced training and must maintain a high level of physical and operational proficiency.

Officers assigned to CS, ERT, and K9, are designated "Technicians" to recognize their advanced training. Today these units are part of the agency's Special Operations Division.

Another important unit is the Magnetometer Support Unit: Formed to ensure that all persons entering secure areas occupied by Secret Service protectees are unarmed, the Secret Service began relying on magnetometer (metal detector) support by Uniformed Division officers to augment its protective efforts away from the White House following the attempt to assassinate President Ronald Reagan.

So basically without further derailing the thread, the snipers we see there are a designated Counter Sniper Team part of the US Secret Service Uniformed Division.
 

Follow us on social media

Top Bottom