House Foreign Affairs Chair Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said Sunday that the gunman behind the assassination attempt against Donald Trump had wanted to create a “diversion” with explosives so that he could escape.
FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee last Wednesday that as part of its investigation into the shooting at Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, law enforcement recovered from Thomas Crooks’ vehicle a drone and explosive devices that could be detonated remotely. Crooks also had a transmitter, although remote detonation likely “would not have worked” from his location, Wray said.
While the FBI still does not know Crooks’ motive, McCaul — who formerly chaired the House Committee on Homeland Security — provided new details on Crooks’ plans before the assassination attempt.
“What’s interesting, Robert, is that he had a detonation device on him and two bombs in the car,” McCaul told host Robert Costa on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “What his plan was was to assassinate the president, create a diversion by blowing up his vehicle on the other side of the property, and then he could escape.”
Secret Service snipers shot Crooks dead after he fired an AR-15 from the top of a building just 400 feet from Trump, killing one rallygoer and injuring two other attendees on July 13. In addition, Trump sustained a 2 cm-wide wound to his ear during the shooting and the bullet was less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head, according to the former president’s doctor.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle faced immense scrutiny from Democrats and Republicans alike over the agency’s failure to prevent the assassination attempt. She resigned last week the day after a House Oversight Committee hearing, in which she struggled to answer questions about why Crooks was not stopped.
McCaul visited the site where Crooks was positioned and believes the gunman should have never been that close to Trump, he said. The Republican added, however, that he has “faith and confidence” in the Secret Service at large — just not in its former leadership.
“I’m glad that Director Cheattle did the right thing and resigned,” McCaul said. “Each time you have an attempted assassination, that is a failure. And she said that herself. I think the agents are good. The problem is the President is under a lot of threats,” he continued, referring to intelligence that suggests Trump may also be the target of Iranian plots to assassinate him.
As several congressional committees probe the assassination attempt, the House voted unanimously last Wednesday to create a bipartisan task force to also investigate the shooting. The task force — which will be composed of seven Republicans and six Democrats, each chosen by their party’s respective leadership — must release its report of findings by mid-December.
McCaul said he is not sure if he will serve on the task force but would be willing to if he were asked to serve.