Broader Republican Criticism
Former Trump national security adviser Robert O’Brien also defended female agents, pushing back against calls to remove women from the Secret Service. “We don’t want quotas in America, but … the lead of my detail was a female officer. She was amazing,” O’Brien said. He emphasized that his detail leader was chosen for her abilities, not her gender.
Cheatle is scheduled to testify before the House about the event, where one rallygoer was killed and several others injured. House Speaker Mike Johnson has called for her resignation, citing security lapses that allowed the shooter to fire multiple shots. Johnson and other conservatives have implied that Cheatle prioritized diversity over security.
Secret Service’s Defense
A Secret Service spokesperson declined to comment on the criticisms, but White House press secretary Karine-Jean Pierre rejected the notion that gender played a role in the events. “These men and women put their lives on the line. … We should not discount that, if it’s a man or if it’s a woman,” she said.
Critics like Elon Musk argued that the female agents’ smaller stature made them unsuitable as bodyguards. However, former Secret Service veteran Gordon Heddell dismissed this idea, emphasizing that height is not critical to an agent’s effectiveness. “Anyone who says that protection is about having only 6-foot-5 protectors does not understand the business of presidential protection,” Heddell said.
The Role of DEI in the Secret Service
The criticism from the right often references a CBS News story about the Secret Service’s goal to have 30 percent of its recruits be women by 2030. Cheatle has supported this goal, emphasizing the importance of attracting diverse candidates. She defended the agents’ performance during the attack, stating, “The people who covered and evacuated the president on that day … performed their job flawlessly, and I’m very proud of the actions that they took.”
The agency’s focus on diversity is part of a broader national effort involving more than 200 law enforcement agencies to increase the number of women in their ranks. Cheatle, who has 25 years of experience with the Secret Service, was appointed director in 2022, becoming the second woman to lead the agency.
