Yesterday, former Secret Service agent and popular radio and podcast host Dan Bongino appeared before an investigative panel about the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. To be clear, this was not a formal Congressional hearing, even though Reps. Chip Roy, Eli Crane, Cory Mills, Andy Biggs, and Matt Gaetz participated. As you can see in the video below, it was held at The Heritage Foundation, not in the U.S. Capitol. 

But that shouldn't distract from the fact that, in four minutes, Bongino calmly but decidedly laid waste to the institutional problems plaguing the Secret Service. Problems which, in his educated opinion, led directly to the assassination attempt. 

This morning, Bongino posted his opening statement on Twitter through his Bongino Report account. Watch: 

.@dbongino GOES OFF at Trump assassination attempt forum:

"A 20-year-old criminal outsmarted them on a $40 drone device... that's disgusting!"

🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/znApqFskfb

— Bongino Report (@BonginoReport) August 27, 2024

While not raising his voice even a decibel, Bongino excoriates the Secret Service's problems of outdated technology ('yesterday's technology tomorrow'), misapplication of ever-increasing funding ('less with more'), and mission creep ('counterfeiting is not what we do now').

He gets right to the point. https://t.co/UjZdqzYgGo

— FarmersFriend (@dmwilson34) August 27, 2024

As he said when he began, he wasn't about to waste any time. It was, in his words, 'an apocalyptic security failure.'

And speaking of that 'less with more' problem,' it sure seems like Bongino is correct and the Secret Service isn't applying its funding where it should go. 

The US Secret Service has a budget of almost $3 Billion of which only just over $1 Billion is spent on Protective Operations. https://t.co/v37ifpcpVI https://t.co/jaFnJfUc6x

— Adastral Trader (@adastral_trader) August 27, 2024

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Maybe that extra $2 billion was allocated to DEI imperatives required by former director Kimberly Cheatle. 

Bongino had some words to say about her too, as well as her successor, Acting Director Ronald Rowe, as the forum continued. 

"This is the kind of stuff the Secret Service was actually wasting their time with while withholding CSU counter surveillance assets and counter-sniper assets from probably the most threatened man on earth.

If you can explain it, good luck, because that’s not the agency I… pic.twitter.com/0OBjgEyOuK

— Heritage Foundation (@Heritage) August 26, 2024

Tie color? TIE COLOR? 

Bongino may be on point that the Secret Service is even worse off with Rowe in charge than it was with Cheatle. 

He and Rep. Roy also were not buying the fact that the would-be assassin, a 20-year-old man who has grown up in the Internet and social media age, did not have any kind of digital footprint. 

There is credible information 20yo Thomas Crooks had sophisticated explosive devices in his possession, and his digital footprint remains nonexistent. How is that possible? @dbongino lays out basic questions surrounding Crooks and his attempted assassination of President Trump pic.twitter.com/0oBtEUeyny

— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) August 26, 2024

After the forum, Bongino also had many of the representatives on his radio show where he and Crane were curious as to how the assassin could have had such advanced explosives without any training ... unless he had help. 

💥Despite what we’ve been led to believe by the Secret Service and FBI, it appears that the explosives found in Crooks’ truck were in fact “ADVANCED” 💥👇@dbongino @EliCrane_CEO pic.twitter.com/PSRm2Jwdru

— MAGA Kitty (@SaveUSAKitty) August 26, 2024

This is all some really disturbing stuff. 

It should be noted that yesterday's forum wasn't the only activity related to the assassination investigation. The members of the formal Congressional task force also toured Butler, Pa., the site of the shooting on Monday.

Rep. Crane said that he helped convene this separate panel because he was not satisfied with the political nature of the task force.

Crane told The Hill that while he respects those on the official task force, whose members were appointed after careful coordination with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), he said it 'was put together politically,' making him question whether the House panel would make decisions based on politics itself.

Bongino shared his thoughts about the political nature of Congress and the Secret Service as well: 

'It appears that for the first time in American history, we have a Secret Service that is making decisions that may not be all political, but may have a political tinge to it,' Bongino said, commenting on the Secret Service’s reasoning for declining previous Trump campaign requests for additional security. Bongino also alleged that the Secret Service is 'dominated' by diversity, equity and inclusion considerations when making major decisions.

He ain't wrong. 

Bongino ripped the SS a new 🫏 🕳️ https://t.co/gyifYhhjwC

— Tammie McDonald 🇺🇸 (@TammieMcDonal17) August 27, 2024

That he did. 

Regardless of the political squabbles that may have led to the dual investigations, it would be irresponsible for the Congressional task force not to bring Bongino in to testify -- or his fellow panelists, former Navy SEAL Erik Prince and SWAT operator Ben Shaffer, who was at the July 13 Trump rally. 

Bongino ruffles a lot of feathers, even among conservatives. We get that. But it's difficult to believe that, given his experience as well as what he said in the clips above, the task force would not want to hear from him officially as part of their investigation. 

We hope that Pennsylvania Representative Mike Kelly, who chairs the task force, makes that happen.