Secret Service, FBI officials to testify about Trump assassination attempt in latest hearing

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate lawmakers are expected Tuesday to grill the acting director of the Secret Service about law enforcement lapses in the hours before the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in the latest in a series of congressional hearings dedicated to the shooting.

Ronald Rowe became acting director of the agency last week after his predecessor, Kimberly Cheatle, resigned in the aftermath of a House hearing in which she was berated by lawmakers from both parties and failed to answer specific questions about the communication failures preceding the July 13 shooting.

Rowe will be joined by FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate at a joint hearing of the Senate committees on the Judiciary and Homeland Security.

The hearing comes one day after the FBI released new details about its investigation into the shooting, revealing that the gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, had looked online for information about mass shootings, power plants, improvised explosive devices and the May assassination attempt of the Slovakian prime minister.

The FBI also said that Trump has agreed to be interviewed by agents as a crime victim; the bureau said last week that the former president had been struck in the ear by a bullet or fragment of one. Trump said Monday evening that he expected that interview to take place on Thursday.

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