Could Butler Happen Again? Former Secret Service Agents Weigh In On Political Violence In 2025

While nan 2024 assassination effort against President Donald Trump successful Butler, Pennsylvania, has resulted successful a big of changes to bolster nan Secret Service's information practices, nan agency has its activity trim retired for it successful an era of unprecedented threats against nan president, according to erstwhile Secret Service agents. 

Trump faces a plethora of threats, ranging from convulsive extremists backed by proxy groups, to home actors inspired to incite unit amid heightened governmental rhetoric, according to experts.

"No U.S. president has been nether truthful overmuch threat of violence," Bill Gage, who served arsenic a Secret Service typical supplier during Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama’s administrations, told Fox News Digital Wednesday. "The threat connected President Trump is nan top that immoderate president has ever faced."

ONE YEAR AFTER TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT, BUTLER WIDOW DEMANDS ACCOUNTABILITY FROM SECRET SERVICE

Secret Service tends to President Donald Trump onstage astatine a rally July 13, 2024, successful Butler, Pennsylvania.  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Twenty-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks opened occurrence connected Trump from a rooftop during nan rally — pinch 1 of nan 8 bullets changeable grazing Trump's ear. In summation to injuring 2 people, nan gunman besides changeable and killed Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, begetter and hubby attending nan rally. 

Months later, different man was apprehended and charged pinch attempting to assassinate Trump astatine his Trump International Golf Club successful West Palm Beach, Florida. Both incidents are nether investigation. 

Political rhetoric from nan near that paints Trump arsenic a threat to populist is vulnerable and could supply fodder for governmental radicals to judge assassinating nan president is nan measurement to prevention nan state — perchance starring to a akin assassination effort seen successful Pennsylvania, Gage said.

Other factors contributing to nan heightened threat levels see policies related to migration aliases backing cuts from nan recently created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) that are unpopular pinch nan left, arsenic good arsenic dispute proxy groups who are backed by actors for illustration Iran who reason Trump, Gage said. 

Republican statesmanlike campaigner and erstwhile U.S. President Donald Trump is assisted by information unit aft gunfire rang retired during a run rally astatine nan Butler Farm Show successful Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 13, 2024.  (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)

"That increases nan threat level connected Trump," Gage said. "There's astir apt dozens and dozens of threats each day, conscionable benignant of insider threats, aliases threats wrong our ain borders that nan Secret Service has to tally down." 

Specifically, Gage pointed to comments from leaders for illustration Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who delivered an reside to nan federation successful June wherever he claimed "democracy is nether assault," pursuing nan Trump administration’s determination to dispatch thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines to respond to nan migration riots successful nan Golden State and spot them nether national command, alternatively than authorities command. 

"Right now location is personification retired location reference Newsom's quotes, personification who wishes President Trump harm," Gage said successful an email successful June to Fox News Digital. "It is up to nan USSS to extremity them. Hopefully those wishing nan President harm will not gaffe done nan cracks."

A spokesperson for Newsom did not instantly respond to a petition for remark from Fox News Digital. 

Trump isn't nan only taxable that's a imaginable target for politically motivated violence. 

Attacks against national migration officials are connected nan emergence and a gunman opened occurrence against Border Patrol agents Monday astatine an annex successful McAllen, Texas. Authorities person yet to place a motive. 

However, lawmakers person not minced their words connected Trump's migration agenda. In June, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., accused ICE of acting "like a violent force" — comments she has since defended. 

Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., who oversees nan House Homeland Security committee’s subcommittee connected separator information and enforcement, said successful a Wednesday connection to Fox News Digital that "radical anti-law enforcement rhetoric" has prompted nan surge successful unit against national migration officials.  

TRUMP CHIEF OF STAFF SUSIE WILES RECOUNTS BUTLER ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT, THOUGHT PRESIDENT WAS DEAD AT FIRST

Republican statesmanlike campaigner erstwhile President Donald Trump is rushed offstage during a rally connected July 13, 2024, successful Butler, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, threats proceed to change, creating further challenges for information forces for illustration nan Secret Service arsenic they adapt. 

Although nan Secret Service is taking action to heighten its information measures, nan agency still faces "considerable vulnerabilities fixed nan rising complexity and sophistication of nan threats it faces," Tim Miller, who served arsenic a Secret Service supplier during Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton’s administrations, said successful an email Wednesday to Fox News Digital.

"The FBI has consistently warned astir homegrown convulsive extremists, which remains a awesome concern," Miller said. 

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While Miller characterized Butler arsenic a "wake-up" telephone for nan Secret Service and said nan incident is sharpening nan agency’s expertise to grip threats, location is still a batch of activity that must beryllium done, he said. 

"The Secret Service is besides still playing catch-up erstwhile it comes to adopting captious exertion — particularly successful nan areas of unafraid communications, drone surveillance, and real-time intelligence tools," Miller said. "These are not luxuries; they are captious to modern protective operations."

A bipartisan House task unit that investigated nan onslaught recovered that nan attempted assassination was "preventable," and wished various mistakes were not an isolated incident. 

At nan apical of nan database of mistakes, nan study identified that nan Secret Service did not unafraid a "high-risk area" adjacent to nan rally, nan American Glass Research (AGR) grounds and building complex. Failure to unafraid this area "eventually allowed Crooks to evade rule enforcement, climb connected and traverse nan tile of nan AGR complex, and unfastened fire." 

Other faults nan task unit recovered included handing complete beforehand readying roles to inexperienced Secret Service personnel, on pinch various exertion and connection breakdowns. 

"Moreover, applicable threat accusation known by members of nan intelligence organization was not escalated to cardinal unit moving nan rally," nan House task unit said successful its report. 

As a result, nan agency has spearheaded a bid of reforms. 

JOURNALIST WHO REFUSED TO DUCK DURING TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT REFLECTS ON BUTLER RALLY IN NEW BOOK

Republican statesmanlike campaigner erstwhile President Donald Trump is rushed offstage during a rally connected July 13, 2024, successful Butler, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

According to erstwhile Secret Service acting head Ronald Rowe, contiguous changes to nan agency pursuing Butler, Pennsylvania, included expanding nan usage of drones for surveillance purposes, and besides incorporating greater counter-drone exertion to mitigate kinetic attacks from different drones. 

The agency besides overhauled its power communications networks and interoperability of those networks pinch Secret Service personnel, and authorities and section rule enforcement officers, Rowe told lawmakers connected a bipartisan House task unit investigating nan assassination effort successful December 2024.  Updates to these power communications are a important change, according to Gage, who noted that he could transportation up to 5 radios astatine a clip because an integrated strategy didn’t exist.

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Rowe besides told lawmakers that nan Secret Service was aiming to up its staffing successful nan adjacent year, and had placed much typical agents successful Trump’s information detail. Some of nan further $231 cardinal successful backing that Congress approved for nan Secret Service successful a stopgap spending measure successful September 2024 to prosecute 1,000 caller agents and officers successful 2025 would spell toward these accrued hiring plans, Rowe said. 

A fewer different changes are successful nan pipeline, including perchance building a precise replica of nan White House. Historically, agents person trained utilizing Tyler Perry’s White House replica astatine his Atlanta movie studio. 

Secret Service head Sean Curran said successful an question and reply connected Fox News’ "My View pinch Lara Trump" successful April that nan agency is moving pinch nan White House to instal specified a building astatine nan James J. Rowley Training Center, a 500-acre halfway successful Laurel, Maryland. 

Republican campaigner Donald Trump is seen pinch humor connected his look surrounded by Secret Service unit arsenic he is taken disconnected nan shape astatine a run arena astatine Butler Farm Show Inc. successful Butler, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2024.  (Rebecca Droke/AFP via Getty Images)

"In bid for our officers and agents to train up properly, they person to spot what it’s for illustration to beryllium astatine nan White House," Curran said. "It’s an important analyzable to know. There’s a batch of ins and outs, and thing arsenic elemental arsenic nan section occurrence section showing up to thief pinch a fire, and they request to cognize wherever they are going." 

Altogether, Congressional oversight bodies issued astir 50 recommendations to nan Secret Service pursuing nan assassination attempt, including ones related to amended power communications and readying for events. The agency reported Thursday that it has executed 21 of those recommendations, and is successful nan process of implementing 16 others. 

"The reforms made complete this past twelvemonth are conscionable nan beginning, and nan agency will proceed to measure its operations, reappraisal recommendations and make further changes arsenic needed," nan Secret Service said successful a news merchandise Thursday.