Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, appeared to imply that racial bias may have been why the Secret Service was slow to deem Thomas Crooks a threat on the day he shot at Trump.
Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle testified on Monday before the House Oversight Committee, less than 10 days after would-be assassin Thomas Crooks nearly killed former President Trump. Cheatle was grilled by Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike.
While little is known about Crooks’ motivations, his identity as a White male was brought center stage when it was Crockett’s turn to speak.
“I wanna talk about training and I want to talk about the fact that there’s been a little bit of dancing around as it relates to this being a suspicious person and this being a situation that was perceived to be a threat, and it seems as if there’s a different analysis that takes place,” Crockett argued. “One of my questions has to do with if you have any bias training that your officers undergo.”
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Rep. Jasmine Crockett argued that among law enforcement, “There usually is not a perception of a threat when it is a young White male, even if they are carrying a long gun.”
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Crockett went on to cite her background as a “civil rights lawyer,” and said, “I have learned so many times, in having to deal with law enforcement, that there usually is not a perception of a threat when it is a young White male, even if they are carrying a long gun. Yet a lot of times, at least in this country, when it comes to law enforcement, there is a perceived threat just by somebody having a little bit more melanin in their skin.”
She then said that while discussions about law enforcement training standards are often sparked by officer-involved shootings, this incident is relevant as well.
“A lot of times, one of the things that we have consistently pushed for on my side of things — and when I say my side, is once we are looking at a tragedy in which law enforcement made an error — it is the bias training and whether or not our officers are getting it,” Crockett said. “So I’m curious to know, in some of the training that you talk about that is part of your budget, has bias training been part of that?”
“Yes, it is,” Cheatle replied.
Thomas Matthew Crooks crawling on a roof moments before he attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump. (DJ Laughery (background))
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According to the Secret Service agency website, Cheatle is responsible for executing the agency’s integrated mission of “protection and investigations by leading a diverse workforce.” Critics have accused Cheatle of prioritizing “woke” ideologies rooted in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) instead of only focusing on hiring the best for the agency.
Despite growing calls from both sides of the aisle to step down over the attack, which killed one rally attendee and critically injured two others, Cheatle has said she will not resign.