A heated exchange erupted between Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe and Texas Republican Representative Pat Fallon over the Secret Service's alleged failures that led to two near-assassination attempts on President-elect Donald Trump.
Fallon criticized Rowe for his delayed visit to the Butler, Pennsylvania, site of a near-fatal incident involving Trump on July 13. The representative further presented a photograph of Rowe standing close to the incoming president during a 9/11 anniversary event in New York, with no protective agent in sight.
As reported by The New York Post, the fiery confrontation was underpinned by criticisms from lower-ranking Secret Service members. They believed that Rowe's presence at the memorial event last month compromised Trump's security by disrupting the chain of command. Fallon later relayed these concerns to the press.
Fallon questioned Rowe about the photograph, insinuating that the acting director had sought a prominent position during the 23rd anniversary of 9/11. "Who is usually at an event like this closest to the President of the United States?" Fallon asked. "Were you the special agent in charge of the detail that day?"
Rowe, visibly irritated, responded, "Actually, let me address this. Actually, congressman, what youre not seeing is the SAC [Special Agent In Charge] of the detail out of the pictures view. And that is the day where we remember more than 3,000 people that have died on 9/11."
Rowe continued, "I actually responded to Ground Zero. I was there going through the ashes of the World Trade Center. I was there congressman I was there to show respect for a Secret Service member that died on 9/11. Do not invoke 9/11 for political purposes."
Fallon retorted, "I am not asking you that. I am asking, were you the special agent in charge?" As the exchange grew heated, Fallon accused Rowe of endangering lives for visibility and personal ambition. "You know why you were there, because you wanted to be visible, because you are auditioning for this job that youre not doing to get," he accused.
Rowe, in response, vehemently defended his service to the nation, stating, "You are out of line, congressman. Way out of line. I am a public servant who has served this nation and spent time on our countrys darkest day."
Secret Service agents had privately expressed concerns about Rowe's attendance at the memorial event, arguing that it could have caused confusion in the chain of command if an incident had occurred. Fallon later admitted to reporters that he was unaware of Rowe's service history on September 11, 2001. He suggested that Rowe should have attended the memorial as a dignitary, not as a Secret Service official.
Fallon voiced his opposition to Rowe's continued leadership of the Secret Service in the upcoming administration, citing the acting director's outburst during the hearing. "So my point in bringing it up was, we clearly didnt learn enough from [July] the 13th where the president almost President Trump was almost killed," he told reporters. "These are pretty high-profile folks [at the memorial]. So why are you getting in the middle of their protection? Because thats a bunch of bulls."
Fallon predicted that Rowe would not retain his position as director after January 20th. Despite the heated confrontation, Rowe maintained that his presence at the memorial event "did not affect protective operation."
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