Spotlight Is On Secret Service's Devastating Failures

In light of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, “Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service” by Washington Post journalist Carol Leonnig, published in 2021, is getting new attention. How did a 20-year-old with an AR-15 rifle climb a roof within 500 feet of the president and obtain a clear line of sight to shoot him? The book described a culture of secrecy, too broad a mission, agents spread too thin, chronic underfunding, episodic security failures and gaffes, major breaches, and fear of agents that due to their failures, a president would be shot.

Speaking with Amna Newas of the PBS News Hour, Leonnig pointed out that “line of sight” is Secret Service 101. Yet they didn’t block it.