Rashi Mehta
Several Conservatives have come together to bash the diversity in secret service after Donald Trump’s assassination attempt. Several Republican lawmakers pointed to gender and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at the Secret Service as contributing factors to security lapses during the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
USA’s former President and current Presidential candidate Donald Trump sustained a minor injury in his ear from a gunshot. Trump was fired at, in his own rally and reports claim he was saved by a hair’s length.
Conservatives question inclusivity in the Secret Service
Congressional members from both parties questioned U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on Monday about how a gunman managed to fire shots at former President Donald Trump during an assassination attempt. Several Republican lawmakers seized on gender and the agency’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts as among the reasons for the security failure.
“Ma’am, you are a DEI horror story,” during the lengthy hearing before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee questioned Cheatle.
Meanwhile, Rep. Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin asked the director if she was “not hiring men because of your desire to hit certain targets.”
Texas Representative Michael Cloud questioned Cheatle about her strategic plan for the Secret Service, which emphasizes diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. He specifically noted her support for the 30×30 Initiative, aimed at boosting the proportion of female recruits to 30% by 2030.
“Does every Secret Service agent meet the same qualifications, or do you have different standards for different people?” Cloud asked.
“Yes, sir. Everyone who moves through the application process has to meet the same standards to become a special agent,” Cheatle answered.
“There should be no women in the secret service” Conservative Matt Walsh posts on X
The most recent criticism of DEI was prominently directed at the Secret Service and Cheatle on Monday. However, the controversy had been simmering since the July 13 assassination attempt at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania. In that case, some conservative voices questioned the suitability of the female agents involved in protecting the former president.
“There should not be any women in the Secret Service. These are supposed to be the very best, and none of the very best at this job are women,” conservative political commentator Matt Walsh posted on X the morning after the assassination attempt.
“If there’s a woman doing a job like this, it 100 percent means that a more qualified male was passed over.” He added. Meghan McCain, the daughter of the late Senator and U.S. presidential candidate John McCain, shared Walsh’s statement.
“The notion that men and women are the same is just absurd. You need to be taller than the candidate to protect them with your body. Why do they have these short women (one who can’t holster a gun apparently) guarding Trump? This is embarrassing and dangerous.” She added.
How the pro-inclusivity side reacted to these statements
David Glasgow, executive director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at New York University School of Law, commented that the recent criticism of DEI was expected.
“It’s now a pretty consistent pattern whenever anything goes wrong that it gets blamed on DEI,” he said. “After the Baltimore Bridge collapse, there were people blaming DEI,” and the same happened after Boeing was dealing with aircraft safety issues.
Massachusetts Democrat Ayanna Pressley condemned Republicans for blaming women for security failures at Trump’s rally and accused them of undermining progress on racial justice and gender equity. She also criticized Cheatle for her inadequate responses during the hearing.
“Every day, Director Cheatle, that you fail to give us answers, they are given more oxygen to make their baseless claims that women and people of color are responsible for tragic events. And that is dangerous too,” Pressley said.
For her part, Cheatle said “the incident on the 13th has nothing to do with DEI. The incident on the 13th has to do with a gap in either planning or communication.”
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