‘She wanted to take a bullet,’ Donald Trump defends Secret Service agent amidst criticism by Elon Musk, others

Former US President Donald Trump praised the bravery of a female Secret Service agent who protected him during a recent assassination attempt, countering critics who doubted her effectiveness due to her size.

At a rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota, Trump commended the agent’s courage in the face of the dangerous incident on July 13.

Trump added, “She was criticized by the fake news because she wasn’t tall enough. She was criticized and she was so brave. She wanted to take a bullet.”

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Trump's remarks were made in response to online criticism of the female Secret Service agent, including comments from tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, who questioned her capacity to protect Trump effectively due to her physical stature.

Musk had said, "Having a small person as body cover for a large man is like an undersized Speedo at the beach – doesn’t cover the subject." He added: “Could be a man or a woman, to be clear, just needs to be large enough to do the job.”

The attempted assassination at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, has prompted a review of Secret Service protocols.

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In the wake of this breach, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who had taken office in August 2022, resigned under mounting pressure.

According to Fox News, Kimberly Cheatle, who had been serving as Secret Service director resigned following bipartisan demands for her immediate departure. The calls for her resignation came after her agency allowed Thomas Matthew Crooks to get within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage where the former president was.

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In her resignation letter, Cheatle stated, “I take full responsibility for the security lapse. In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director.”

Cheatle, the 27th director of the US Secret Service, has been in office since September 2022. She oversees a team of 7,800 Special Agents, Uniformed Division Officers, Technical Law Enforcement Officers, and various administrative, professional, and technical staff.

Before her role with the Secret Service, Cheatle served as Senior Director of Global Security at PepsiCo, where she was responsible for risk management assessment and mitigation strategies.

As Kimberly Cheatle faces scrutiny, Tesla CEO Elon Musk also commented about the chief’s career trajectory, who had earlier worked in Pepsico. “So before being in charge of protecting the President, she was guarding bags of Cheetos,” wrote Musk, on X, formerly known as Twitter.

(With inputs from agencies)