The Secret Service (USSS) has launched an investigation after a female agent reportedly left her post to breastfeed her baby during Donald Trump’s campaign rally in North Carolina on Wednesday. The incident was reported by Real Clear Politics journalist Susan Crabtree, who cited several sources familiar with the situation.
According to these sources, the agent did not inform her superiors before attending to her child. The investigation follows criticism of the Secret Service’s security lapses during Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, which led to an assassination attempt on the GOP nominee.
Ahead of the North Carolina rally, the USSS site agent responsible for overseeing event security was preparing for the arrival of Trump’s motorcade. During a final sweep of the walking route, the site agent discovered the female agent breastfeeding her baby in a room designated for critical Secret Service operations, such as handling emergencies.
USSS protocol prohibits agents on protective duty from bringing children to work. In addition, the agent had reportedly brought two other family members into the room with her. The agent, who is assigned to the Atlanta Field Office, and her family members were reportedly escorted into the room by event staff who had not undergone security clearance, bypassing the Uniformed Division checkpoint.
“All employees of the US Secret Service are held to the highest standards,” USSS spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi told Crabtree in response to the incident. “While there was no impact on the North Carolina event, the specifics of this incident are being examined. Given that this is a personnel matter, we are not in a position to comment further.”
This incident adds to the growing list of controversies surrounding the Secret Service, an agency tasked with providing the highest level of security for the nation’s leaders. Former USSS Director Kim Cheatle resigned following the assassination attempt on Trump.