This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A second member of the extremist "Squad" in Congress, those leftists who often have advocated for largely communist ideology, is being booted from office by voters in her own Democratic Party.
Fox News reports voters in Missouri's Democrat-majority 1st Congressional District "served a sharp rebuke of the left's progressive wing" and voted Bush out.
The winner of the Democrat primary for that congressional race was Wesley Bell, a St. Louis County prosecutor who is "more moderate" and had the backing of pro-Israel groups offended by Bush's constant attacks on the nation.
The first "Squad" member booted was Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., who fell in his own party's primary to a moderate pro-Israel candidate.
Both Bush and Bowman were radically opposed to the longstanding U.S. ties to Israel, a position they increasingly used after the attack by the Hamas terrorists on Israel last Oct. 7, when the invaders slaughtered some 1,200 civilians.
Bush proclaimed that butchery was, "Israel's collective punishment against Palestinians for Hamas' actions is a war crime."
She emphasized her extremist positions even on the eve of the election, holding an online rally with Bowman and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., another anti-Israel "Squad" member.
She also had been under investigation by the Department of Justice and others for having her husband as a paid member of her bodyguard detail.
WND reported other ethics clouds hovering over Bush.
Besides paying her husband some $62,000, she's also gotten the attention of watchdog organizations who have raised questions about gifts she's taken, including, "dresses, jewelry, and shoes."
Bowman's scandalous behavior including his decision to pull a Capitol fire alarm, disrupting the operations of Congress.
A House Ethics Committee investigation found his explanation for his actions "misleading."
He pulled the alarm in a stunt, caught on video, just as the House was preparing to pass a stopgap spending measure to avoid a government shutdown.
He claimed he thought the fire alarm was a button to open the door so he could join the vote, but the Office of Congressional Ethics found he was not on his way to vote at the time, but was heading to a meeting of the House Democratic Caucus.
He was censured by the House, and then voted out by his district.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – As the Mideast in particular, and the wider world in general, awaits Iran's revenge strike for the killing of senior Hezbollah and Hamas leaders – the latter in its own capital – Iranian-aligned Shia militias fired multiple missiles at America's Ain al-Asad Air Base in Iraq – wounding at least five military personnel.
Charles Lister, director of the Syria program of the Washington-based Middle East Institute think tank, wrote on X: "Today's rocket attack on Ain al-Asad was the 219th attack by Iran's proxies on U.S. forces in Syria & Iraq since Oct 2023."
He added six attacks have happened in the last three weeks. It was not immediately clear which group was responsible for the strike, although media linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack was carried out by one of its proxies, most likely an Iraqi offshoot of Hezbollah.
Tensions in the Middle East unabated
This strike against a U.S. base in Iraq is almost certainly a precursor for the predicted main event – of Iran and Hezbollah revenge for the recent killings on their home soil. Tensions in Israel – as they are in capitals the world over are extremely high – and there are a dizzying array of permutations of what is likely to take place; claims and counter-claims of who will align with whom, amid multiple reports of Iran utilizing its extensive network among its allies in Russia, North Korea, and even Pakistan to defend against predicted Israeli reprisals.
In Washington, the Biden-Harris administration seems resigned to the fact Tehran will order strikes against Israel and/or Israeli/Jewish targets overseas in the coming hours and days. Despite this assessment, the U.S. military – still by some distance the most powerful armed forces on the planet – have indeed been activated in the region.
Gen. Michael "Erik" Kurilla, commander of CENTCOM arrived in Israel Monday for top-level situational assessments with senior Israeli defense officials – including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Chief of the General Staff, Lt.-Gen Herzi Halevi.
Apart from Gen. Kurilla's presence, the Biden-Harris administration has given the green light for an impressive military presence to build up in the region, almost on a par with immediately post-Oct. 7.
According to former Jerusalem Post editor-in-chief Yaakov Katz, "The USS Lincoln carrier strike group is on its way to the region to replace the USS Roosevelt which is still here after replacing the Eisenhower strike group in June. Additional ballistic missile defense-capable cruisers and destroyers have been deployed to the region from Eucom and Centcom regions and additional fighter jet squadrons, including a squadron of advanced stealthy F-22 Raptors, have been sent to the Middle East as well."
Although, the substance of his post is still entirely valid, shows of force and the build-up of military assets is all well and good – and is a nod to tactical nous. However, the ultimate problem remains, a bellicose and increasingly emboldened Islamic Republic on the march and feeling itself immune to pressure, because almost none – Israel's strike in Tehran excepted – has been visited on its doorstep.
Under President Trump, Iran's muscular foreign policy of wreaking havoc in the region through the use of proxies while remaining "above the fray" was brought into question, particularly through the killing of former Quds Force commander Qassem Suleimani. It is practically unthinkable the Biden administration would repeat anything like this bold move. In its desperation for "stability" it is sowing the seeds of potentially deadly chaos.
Indeed, the Times of Israel reported U.S. officials telling Israeli counterparts to not allow too strong a response – which seems entirely dependent on what Iran/Hezbollah hit. It is not at clear what would be considered an acceptable amount of damage or loss of life to not engender an increasingly potent reply. The U.S. warning concluded, "the goal at the end of the day is not to lead to an all-out war."
Iran-Israel
Meanwhile, on the Iranian side, there are reports it will turn to its rogue friends for both defensive and offensive weaponry. As early as Sunday, eyewitness accounts – relayed in an X space on the Middle East crisis and reported in the New York Times on Monday – confirmed the presence of Russian-made air defense and radar systems in Tehran.
This development clearly shows the mullahs' nervousness about the scale of the attack they have planned and the possible repercussions stemming from it. A crucial thing to bear in mind is Iran deployed similar weapons in April and they proved mostly ineffective against Israel's response to the more than 300 projectiles fired toward it. The request came following a day-long visit to Tehran by the head of the Russian Security Council and former Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, on Monday.
Unlike the Iranian attack in April, the U.S. is still in the dark about what moves the Islamic Republic regime is likely to make – although it – and other actors – seem certain it will happen. This would appear doubly to be the case if the U.S. has already warned Israel – outlined above – about over-retaliating – which in any other circumstance would rightly be lampooned as a wild concept.
Surprising reports have also surfaced about Pakistan's potential involvement with arming Iran with Shaheen-III ballistic missiles if war with Israel breaks out. The two countries have a long border and exchanged ballistic missiles in January, with Iran firing into its neighbor first. The decision was apparently reached at an emergency meeting of the foreign ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), requested by Iran and Pakistan, took place Monday in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah, with Iran examining its response to the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, according to the Jerusalem Post.
While Iran is a pre-nuclear power (just), Pakistan is one of the few countries to possess a nuclear arsenal. So too North Korea, a foe about which little seems to be known or attention given. Although one doesn't want to give in to doomsday scenarios, this mysterious state could feel its time to play a major role on the international stage has come – and with a wildly unpredictable leader, it seems anything is possible.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Reports circulated in Hebrew media Monday of a preemptive Israeli strike to deter Iran from dealing a "heavy blow" to its regional nemesis in the wake of ratcheting tensions following the IDF's elimination last week of both senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut, and Hamas' political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
These reports appeared in tandem with the U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's remarks to G7 counterparts about the likelihood of an Iranian response in the "next 24 to 48 hours."
From the Israeli perspective, a preemptive strike would only be forthcoming if there were unimpeachable evidence of the kind of attack Tehran was planning – and was available to both Israel and the United States. This assessment followed Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convening a meeting of the country's security chiefs Sunday evening.
Also present at the meeting were Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet head Ronen Bar, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant – with whom Netanyahu is again seemingly at odds and might even fire – and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi.
Israeli preemptive strike?
While Israel took immediate credit for the strike which killed Shukr in Beirut – although the Iranian proxy delayed confirming his death until his corpse had been recovered from an apartment in the Lebanese capital's Dahiyeh neighborhood – it has kept entirely mum on the operation that accounted for the arch Palestinian terrorist and embezzler of billions of dollars.
In spite of this apparent Israeli reticence to take credit for the hit, Iran has decided Jerusalem carried it out, and has threatened – in its blind fury at the humiliation it suffered on its own territory of failing to protect an honored guest – to target civilian population centers as well as military installations.
Prior to Blinken's warning, Iran was expected to strike back – either directly and/or via its many proxies in the region over the weekend. The fact this – as of writing – has not occurred highlights the bind in which the Islamic Republic – and to a certain degree – Hezbollah – find themselves.
Tehran has reportedly shaken off every and all attempts to get it to modulate its response, apparently telling U.S. and Arab interlocutors "it doesn't care" if its response triggers a regional war. This is a complex stance to parse.
For the 45 years of its existence the Iranian theocracy has made it clear it sees the exporting of the Islamic revolution as its primary raison d'etre – and the inevitable showdown with the U.S. and Israel as a thing to be desired in and of itself.
However, it might not be in a position to achieve this goal at the moment; which would make the prospect of an all-out regional war, which could likely draw other actors – the United States, Russia, possibly China, and perhaps even North Korea – which has given technical expertise to Iran about manufacturing nuclear weapons – among them – as one in need of very careful deliberation.
Biden to hold security assessment
The seriousness with which the situation is being viewed in capitals across the world is evident by reports U.S. President Joe Biden – in the dwindling light of a largely failed presidency, which has lacked either urgency or direction on the Iranian question for nearly four long years – will convene his national security team Monday.
Ahead of the meeting, Biden is expected to speak with Jordan's King Abdullah, who announced he would not permit Iranian missiles to fly over Jordanian airspace. It is not clear if Biden will be able to array the same defensive configuration as was managed in April, when Iran launched more than 300 projectiles at Israel following the killing of an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) general in Damascus – almost all of which either fell short or were destroyed in the air.
Israel remains on the highest alert, and the direct Iranian threat in a way seems the least vexing, particularly with the U.S. stationing an aircraft carrier in the Eastern Mediterranean. Perhaps more concerning is the likely response from Iran's proxies – particularly Hezbollah in Lebanon, which could fire thousands of rockets designed to overwhelm Israel's defensive missile shield, including Iron Dome, and the Arrow and David's Sling systems, and the Houthi in Yemen.
Both of these groups have caused loss of life from missiles and drones fired into Israel – including the Iranian-made rocket which killed 12 Druze children playing soccer in Majdal Shams on July 27. Israeli intelligence assessments suggest the Iranian axis will likely target Israel – as well as potentially softer Israeli or Jewish targets overseas – over a number of days and the attacks will likely not simply resemble the one largely rebuffed in April.
On the home front, Israelis are remaining stoical, albeit grimly resigned to the almost certain inevitability of attacks from both Hezbollah and Iran.
Over the weekend some thought Iran and its proxies likely to attack Israel on Aug. 12/13, which this year coincides with the the most somber day in the Jewish calendar – namely Tisha B'Av or the Ninth of Av. It is a day much like Yom Kippur, where Jews are required to refrain from eating and drinking, and wearing leather shoes among other prohibitions.
Numerous calamities have befallen the Jewish people on this day, including the destruction of both the First and Second Holy Temples in Jerusalem, the decree for the expulsion from Spain during the Inquisition in 1492, and also the decision to liquidate the Warsaw Ghetto in 1942.
In biblical times, it was the date on which 10 of the 12 spies Moses sent to scout out the land, returned a report about the impregnability of its defenders. Judaism's sages wrote about the somber fast day being transformed into a day of rejoicing. Will it be prefaced, however, by a regional war of unimaginable pain and suffering?
Israelis' lives go on, but we wait and pray, trepidatious of what might come next.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A new report in the Washington Times has documented Kamala Harris' view on databases listing the nation's guns – and their owners.
And just exactly why she supported that particular scheme in technology.
It was because she wanted to use those lists of gun owners to send police out to confiscate the weapons.
The report confirmed, "Harris once threatened to use databases of gun owners to send police to their homes to confiscate firearms."
There had recently been shootings in California and Texas when she attended a Democratic presidential primary forum in 2019.
That was shortly before she dumped her campaign that year over its underwhelming support, in which she did not win the support of a single convention delegate.
The report explains Harris announced she was "prepared to take executive action" to demand "comprehensive background checks," the report said.
Further, she planned to attack gun dealers and ban what she called "assault weapons."
She boasted of already having carried off those campaigns, in California.
The report said, "She said she knew how to enforce tough gun laws because as California attorney general she allowed police to 'knock on the doors of people' on a state list of prohibited gun owners and people deemed a danger to themselves and others."
She boasted, "We sent law enforcement out to take those guns because we have to deal with this on all levels."
Since then, Harris has worked on promoting those "red flag" laws, those schemes adopted by multiple states that allow an individual to go to court where a judge would, without evidence, decide whether someone else should be deprived of any weapons they may own.
She promoted the launch of a National Extreme Risk Protection Order Resource Center, paid for by the Department of Justice.
That works to impose those gun confiscation laws on states.
It already has been facing backlash from state officials who have objected to its agenda to "suspend fundamental rights under the Second Amendment with no genuine due process."
Recently, Harris campaign consultants have claimed "she no longer supported a mandatory buyback of civilian-owned 'assault weapons,'" the report said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Pro-abortion radicals were enraged when the Supreme Court struck down the faulty Roe decision from 1973, the leftist ruling that created out of nothing in the Constitution the federal "right" to abortion.
Some got violent.
And now some of those have pleaded guilty to felony counts for vandalizing a crisis pregnancy center.
A report from the Florida Capital Star explains four members of "Jane's Revenge" have admitted to threatening and vandalizing those centers across Florida.
It was Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody who filed court action against several defendants, Caleb Freestone, Amber Marie Smith-Stewart, Annarella Rivera and Gabriella Victoria Oropesa.
They faced charges of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
It actually was the first time a state attorney general used the law to hold protesters of pregnancy care centers accountable, the report explained.
The administration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris has used the law often, but those attacks have been almost exclusively on those who protest the abortion industry's wanton destruction of the unborn. In fact, the Biden-Harris DOJ has sent multiple individuals, including grandmothers, to prison for extended terms because they sought to protect the unborn.
The law provides for civil and criminal penalties for those who "by force or threat of force … intentionally … intimidates or interferes with or attempts to … intimidate or interfere with any person because that person is or has been … providing reproductive health services."
The report explains the defendants vandalized at least three pregnancy resource centers in Florida.
Their destruction included spray paying slogans such as "If abortions aren't safe, neither are you."
They will be ordered to pay restitution, and they could face up to 10 years in prison at sentencing.
Further, they will be banned forever from being within 100 feet of crisis pregnancy centers.
In a statement, Moody said, "We will not allow radicals to threaten and intimidate women seeking help from crisis pregnancy centers or the counselors and health care professionals serving these women and their babies. In Florida, illegal actions have consequences, and I am proud of the work our attorneys did in this case to make sure these extremists were held accountable."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Pat Boone has been releasing songs, well, just about forever. At age 90, his newest is called "Where Did America Go?" and it's earning the praise of Samaritan's Purse chief Franklin Graham.
"Pat Boone is a man who loves God and loves this country. I respect and appreciate him so much. At age 90, he has just released a new song 'Where Did America Go?' that should make us all stop and think – and pray for our nation," Graham wrote on social media.
On social media, Boone explained, "With this new song, I'm calling for us to come back together in the way that we were when this country became America. I hope you will connect with the truths in the lyrics of this song and find hope in the solutions that I present. I'm trying to put all these thoughts into words that we can all understand and agree with, and in a melody I think is singable and memorable. I hope you all enjoy the new track, and I hope that it resonates with you in these times."
A report at Decision Magazine noted Boone, "the iconic pop singer and devout Christian," reached stardom in the 1950s. He often was in competition with Elvis Presley for hits, fans and popularity.
The lyrics include, "That old Constitution / Still holds the solution. But we gave up our freedoms for sale."
The report cited Boone's concern that, "I don't see how America can keep going in this way. I'm deeply concerned. We've got elections coming up, maybe they'll make a difference. But I couldn't wait, I just felt I had to do something like my friend Bob Dylan did when we were in similar states of confusion."
The report explains, "The lyrics of the song call on listeners to reflect on the current state of division in the U.S."
And Boone described it as an alarm that America is in danger of losing its way.
More lyrics: "Can America still rise again? / Find our way back to where we were then? / Yes, that old Family Bible / Still holds our survival / It spells out the way we can win."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The Olympic Games in Paris appear to be on an agenda to return to the games' original pagan roots, where blood ceremonies highlighted the days and allegiances were sworn to various pagan gods.
Just take a look at the videos that feature a blasphemous portrayal of the Last Supper, featuring an obese woman and drag queens, a blue Smurf-type character and a decapitated head – singing no less.
Actually, there was a recent report from ABC.net.au that explained the games, from about 776 B.C., drew naked men to compete in a range of events, where women were not welcome.
The report explained, "Father Richard Pengelley, the former Anglican dean of Perth who represented Australia in water polo at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics, says sport and religion were inseparable for the ancient Greeks."
He said the goal actually was "religious education."
"For example, ancient athletes would swear an oath before competing to follow the rules and compete with honour and respect. It's a tradition that persists at the modern Olympic Games."
"Athletes and priests also made elaborate blood tributes to their gods, including the sacrifice of a hundred oxen at the Great Altar of Zeus at every Games," the report said.
The pagan events were outlawed in 393 A.D. by the Christian Roman Emperor Theodosius, then restarted in the late 19th century, and then actually emphasizing "muscular Christianity," the idea that "Christian ethics could be taught through sport."
The report noted that in the modern games, "blood sacrifices at the altar of Zeus are a thing of the past," at least so far.
But they still do include ancient religious rituals including the lighting of the cauldron and the athletes' oaths.
The report called the modern games a "civil religion."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
There's a Supreme Court precedent in Hill v. Colorado that comes out of that leftist and abortion-promoting state that cuts into the free speech rights of counselors who wish to persuade women not to abort their unborn children.
A case now has developed that allows a coalition of those counselors to ask the justices to reverse that agenda that appears to infringe on constitutionally backed freedoms.
A report from the Thomas More Society explains that pro-life advocates from Coalition Life, the "nation's largest professional sidewalk counseling organization," are requesting the high court's intervention in their case.
The petition for certiorari was filed on behalf of Coalition Life in the organization's fight with the city of Carbondale, Illinois.
Helping in the fight for the pro-life agenda is former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement.
"For nearly a quarter of a century, sidewalk counselors like those who work with Coalition Life have been forced to live with 'an entirely separate, abridged edition of the First Amendment' when it comes to the kind of peaceful, conversational speech outside an abortion facility in which they wish to engage," Clement explained.
The case developed following 2023 when Carbondale, Illinois, adopted a "bubble zone" law that limits Americans' speech on a particular topic in a particular location.
The restriction applied to public sidewalks outside "hospitals, medical clinics, and healthcare facilities" to include Carbondale's three abortion businesses.
It was modeled on Colorado's earlier censorship scheme in Hill.
That lets governments ban "the peaceful life-affirming speech of pro-life advocates on public sidewalks. Since the Supreme Court's decision in Hill, similar laws aimed at chilling pro-life speech near abortion facilities have proliferated nationwide, especially in abortion-permissive municipalities, and states such as Montana and New Hampshire," the legal team explained.
The counselors sued Carbondale in March 2024, and a federal court opened the path to the Supreme Court by saying it could not rule against the Hill precedent.
The society's lawyers said, "Since the Supreme Court decided Hill in 2000, the case has come under fire for being out of step with the First Amendment and a prime example of the 'abortion distortion' factor in case law. The Supreme Court itself, in its 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, singled out Hill as the leading example of the court's abortion precedents having 'distorted First Amendment doctrines'—suggesting its readiness to revisit the constitutionality of speech-restricting 'bubble zone' laws."
Carbondale has developed an abortion industry because of its proximity to nearby states with abortion restrictions.
"Now that the Supreme Court has returned the abortion debate to the people and their legislators, it is more important than ever to restore the free speech rights of those who advocate for life in the public square," explained Peter Breen, Thomas More Society executive vice president.
"Hill v. Colorado was egregiously wrong on the day it was decided, and it remains a black mark in our law to this day. In the decades since the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Hill, the Court has steadily eroded Hill's shaky foundations in more recent First Amendment cases and, in the majority opinion which overturned Roe v. Wade, sounded the death knell for Hill's distortion of our bedrock First Amendment principles."
He said, "'Bubble zones,' like the one in Carbondale, are an unconstitutional and overzealous attempt to show favor to abortion businesses, at the expense of the free speech rights of folks who seek to offer information, alternatives, and resources to pregnant women in need. It's time to end, once and for all, the political gamesmanship places like Carbondale play with our free speech rights."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The stunning move canceled the requirement for offenders to appear before a judge
There's no comment from a Minnesota judge about why he abruptly reversed a local court policy that was allowing domestic violence suspects to be freed from jail on as little as $150 cash bond, but the change followed almost immediately a posting of the get-out-of-jail practice online.
The situation has been profiled in a report at the Minnesota Sun, which noted the details were confirmed by CrimeWatchMpls on social media.
The report said officials in the Hennepin County Court system recently modified a standing order regarding domestic abuse suspects. The old policy required them to be held until they had appeared before a judge, so that orders, like no-contact instructions and such, could be implemented.
But Hennepin County District Court Chief Judge Kerry Meyer changed that.
His new order allowed "suspects arrested on probable cause misdemeanor domestic abuse to be released from custody on cash bail as low as $150 just hours after their arrest and before seeing a judge. Suspects arrested on a probable cause gross misdemeanor domestic abuse charge could post cash bail as low as $1,000 and be released from custody before being brought before a judge, or having no-contact orders issued in either case," according to postings by the crime watch group.
That change was posted for people to see Friday evening.
"Less than 24 hours after the information was posted on Crime Watch's X feed, Chief Judge Meyer issued a new order on Saturday evening rescinding the portion of the June 18 Standing Order that applied to misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor suspects jailed on probable cause domestic abuse," the report explained.
It said Meyer explained, "This Order is intended to revert misdemeanor domestic offenses to the 2019 Standing Order provisions, put gross misdemeanor domestics in that same position, and clarify no contact orders will be issued upon release until future amendment."
The report said that means those who are arrested on suspicion of domestic violence must remain in jail until they appear before a judge who would make decisions regarding limits.
Meyer, in a statement to reporters, said he would have no further comment beyond the order.
CrimeWatchMpls said, "This is a small but significant victory that shows the power of this platform and those of you who took action in contacting the court following our post."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle has been busy defending her agency, and rejecting calls for her to resign, in the wake of Saturday's attempted assassination that left President Donald Trump injured.
The gunman, 20, now dead, fired at Trump from the roof of a building about 120 yards away.
Cheatle said, during an interview, the building was secured from the "inside" because of its roof, which provided the gunman with a clear line of sight to Trump.
"That building, in particular, has a sloped roof at its highest point," she said in the interview with ABC. "And so there will be a safety factor that will be considered there that we wouldn't want to put somebody up on a sloped roof. And so you know the decision was made to secure the building from the inside."
"That's crap," said former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich at the Republican National Convention Tuesday night.
There are a number of circumstances that undoubtedly will need to be reviewed, including her decision not to send an agent to the roof of a building overlooking a Trump rally because of the slope of that roof, a slope that the gunman apparently had no difficulty traversing.
Other questions arise from a ladder and ammunition the gunman bought just before the shooting, and how he got the ladder up against a building to reach the roof.
There are other concerns, too.
A commentary at the Western Journal, for example, cited her repeated remarks that it was only a “short” time between notification of a potential gunman and the shots, which killed one Trump supporter who was protecting his family and injured two more.
"Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle is a woman who has a lot to explain, and it turns out she's not very good at explaining it," the commentary said.
"Cheatle's record came under scrutiny almost immediately after the attack, with conservative activist Mike Cernovich noting Saturday that her profile on the government's website emphasized diversity and noted that her prior experience, before becoming the 27th director of Secret Service, was senior director of global security at PepsiCo."
Trump credited God's intervention with saving his life, as he was struck in the ear a millisecond after he turned his head. Without that move, he may have been struck directly in the head.
So how was a 20-year-old able to get within firing range of Trump while the Secret Service agents were supposed to be securing the location, and local police were helping.
"Diversity," the commentary charged, "has not managed to save a single person under the Secret Service's protection, at least that we know about, which makes the prominence given to that word just a little bit odd. And the fact that it makes it look like Cheatle was a diversity hire isn't her only issue…"
It pointed out that it was 26 minutes that elapsed after the shooting initially was spotted, and audience members contacted police about a man on the roof of the building, until he fired a barrage at Trump and immediately was shot and killed by officers.
Cheatle said that time period of nearly half an hour is "a very short period of time."
It was WPXI-TV of Pittsburgh that confirmed the gunman was seen by law enforcement nearly half an hour before shots were fired.
One source cited in the commentary said a suspicious man was reported at 5:45 p.m. Shots rang out at 6:11.
The report explained, "26 minutes after the second picture of Crooks was taken by law enforcement and the information called in, shots were fired from the roof of the American Glass Research building. Seconds later, a Secret Service sniper returned fire and killed Crooks."
The commentary also noted that "thankfully" Cheatle said it was an event "that should have never happened."
It's not the first failure on the part of the Secret Service in recent weeks. A woman agent apparently had to be physically restrained, disarmed and handcuffed after she had "an apparent mental health breakdown" while assigned to guard Kamala Harris.
ABC reported Cheatle expressed her opinion that such shootings are “unacceptable.”
And, she said, it "shouldn't happen again."
She also excused her own agency as "local authorities were tasked with securing the building where the alleged shooter fired the shots."
"We sought assistance from our local counterparts for the outer perimeter. There was local police in that building — there was local police in the area that were responsible for the outer perimeter of the building," she said.
She also claimed that the Secret Service "is not political."