Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) on Monday moved to force a vote on impeaching U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, ratcheting up the pressure on the embattled agency leader following the assassination attempt on former President Trump earlier this month.
The effort by Mace — which forces leadership to act on the resolution within two legislative days — came just over one week after the shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pa., which left Trump injured, one rally goer dead and two others seriously injured.
It also comes hours after lawmakers from both parties grilled Cheatle in an Oversight Committee hearing that left them frustrated and exasperated.
Mace took on Cheatle directly during the hearing, telling her “you’re full of s—.”
“You’re just being completely dishonest,” she added.
The shooting has sparked intense scrutiny on the Secret Service — especially Cheatle — with lawmakers raising questions about security lapses at the rally and how a gunman could get so close to a former president and the current presidential nominee of a major political party.
Several lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have called on her to resign, a number that grew at Monday’s hearing. Cheatle has said she does not plan to leave her post.
It remains unclear how Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and his leadership team plan to handle the measure, which accuses Cheatle of dereliction of duty. They could either stage a vote on the resolution or move to table it or refer it to committee.
Asked about potential options if Cheatle does not resign — including impeachment — during an interview with The Hill at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last week, Johnson said, “We’re looking at all those options right now.”
