Journalist Benny Johnson traveled to Butler, Pennsylvania, to uncover the truth about the events leading up to the July 13 assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. The documentary, titled “The Trump Kill Box,” aims to investigate the operational security failures that allowed 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks to shoot President Trump, resulting in the death of an innocent Trump supporter and the injury of several others.
Johnson emphasized the importance of understanding how the federal government and Secret Service permitted Crooks, armed with a rifle and a rangefinder, to position himself on a roof near Trump’s rally with the intent to kill Trump and his supporters. Johnson asserted that since the U.S. government “has told us nothing” and the Secret Service has “lied” numerous times, it is crucial to seek answers independently.
Joining Johnson were Congressmen Cory Mills (R-FL) and Eli Crane (R-AZ) of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee. Both have constitutional oversight of the Secret Service and expertise in counter-sniper operations and tactical threat engagement. Mills is an Army combat veteran and former State Department sniper, while Crane is a former Navy SEAL who led his platoon’s sniper team.
The team investigated five main security failures: rooftop kill zones, security dead zones, overwatch, the sniper’s nest, and communications collapse.
“We’ve got to figure out how a 20-year-old kid acting alone got within 150 yards of one of the most powerful, loved, but also one of the most hated individuals on the planet,” said Rep. Crane.
Crooks was denied entry to the event by the Secret Service and flagged as suspicious by local law enforcement before he climbed onto a roof armed with a rifle. His movements were “slow and obvious to anyone with a line of sight,” Johnson noted, citing newly released video footage of Crooks on the rooftop.
Crooks was on the roof for at least three minutes before attempting to assassinate Trump. Local law enforcement surrounded him, and Crooks pointed his rifle at both police and event attendees before firing shots, according to video footage.
Secret Service snipers on a red barn behind Trump had a clear line of sight to engage the shooter but did not fire until after Trump was shot. It took them 20 seconds to neutralize Crooks. Congressmen Crane and Mills suggested that the snipers’ scopes might have been on high magnification, causing Crooks not to appear in the scope, though this has not been verified.
Local law enforcement pointed to communication failures, stating they were supposed to receive a briefing from Secret Service snipers before the event, but the meeting never happened. Officers said they had no direct way to contact the Secret Service snipers or agents, leaving them “in the dark” and contributing to the slow neutralization of Crooks.
While on the “Sniper’s Nest,” where Crooks was positioned, Representatives Crane and Mills determined that the Secret Service snipers should have easily been able to take out Crooks. Video footage shows the would-be assassin’s position was dangerously close to President Trump, with Secret Service snipers directly behind the GOP presidential nominee.
“The Secret Service is responsible for stationing all protective teams for the president. Local and state law enforcement officers go where they’re told and do what they’re told,” said Johnson.
A local SWAT sniper team stationed on the second floor of the AGR building had “perfect overwatch of the roof” where Crooks was positioned. Johnson said these snipers “could have and should have” engaged Crooks before he came within sight of Trump. However, Rep. Crane explained that after one of the SWAT snipers reported Crooks as suspicious, he went to investigate his findings and got locked out of the building. This caused the other SWAT sniper to leave his post to let the officer back in, and it was at that moment that Crooks fired the shots.
The experts also questioned why there was no counter-sniper team on top of the water tower, an operational oversight. Rep. Crane explained that leaving the water tower unmanned surrendered the high ground, crucial for law enforcement.
The documentary also revealed “Security Dead Zones,” wide-open fields allowing individuals to evade security checkpoints.
Congressman Mills emphasized the need to “get the facts” and conduct a “bipartisan full investigation” into the July 13 incident to ensure transparency and restore public confidence that the assassination attempt was not due to “an inside job,” “negligence,” or “dereliction of duty.” Mills stressed that citizens need assurance that their president, or future presidents, will be safe and protected and that the Secret Service will learn from their mistakes and improve its operations.
The investigation concluded that significant operational failures by the Secret Service could have prevented the assassination attempt on President Trump.
Benny Johnson is the host of “The Benny Show,” available on multiple platforms, and the full documentary can be viewed here.