How to Get Answers on the Trump Shooting

COMMENTARY Crime and Justice

How to Get Answers on the Trump Shooting

Aug 14, 2024 1 min read
COMMENTARY BY
Mark Morgan

Visiting Fellow, Border Security and Immigration Center

Mark Morgan is a Visiting Fellow in the Border Security and Immigration Center at The Heritage Foundation.

Key Takeaways

While I appreciate the efforts of House committees to perform oversight of the investigation...such activities are insufficient.

Congress should immediately appoint an independent commission, outside the scope of normal congressional processes and of the Biden administration.

The death of Corey Comperatore and the attempt on Mr. Trump’s life demand a transparent and trustworthy process. An independent commission is the only way.

While I appreciate the efforts of House committees to perform oversight of the investigation into the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump (“A Secret Service House Cleaning,” Review & Outlook, July 24), such activities are insufficient to provide the transparency, answers and reassurances Americans deserve.

There isn’t enough time left in this Congress for a full-scope investigation, as members depart for August recess and campaign for re-election. Our nation is also painfully divided and has little faith in Congress’s ability to perform such a critical inquiry, free from the political bias, influence and theatrics we’ve been accustomed to.

The testimony from the now-resigned Secret Service director is a perfect example of why we can’t rely solely on congressional oversight to deliver a full accounting of that day. Further, the speaker’s new bipartisan task force will do little to alleviate the distrust of the American people in what is still a political process.

Congress should immediately appoint an independent commission, outside the scope of normal congressional processes and of the Biden administration. It can be composed of external security experts and investigators, free from political influence.

The death of Corey Comperatore and the attempt on Mr. Trump’s life demand a transparent and trustworthy process. An independent commission is the only way to deliver that.

This piece originally appeared in the Wall Street Journal on August 6, 2024