Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

One of the questions that Rowe has faced from lawmakers is how information was communicated at the Butler rally, both internally within the Secret Service and between the agency and local law enforcement.

Much of the communications, Rowe says, took place via text messaging.

"It was great there was a text chain," he says. "But that communication needs to go over the net. It needs to go over a radio channel so that everyone has situational awareness of it."

"I want people using the radio," he adds. "We have to be able to make sure that whenever we come across a situation that everyone has situational awareness of this."

Acting Secret Service director Ronald Rowe Jr tells Congress one of his first actions in the job was to visit Butler, Pennsylvania to assess the mistakes made by security officials at the rally on 13 July.

Rowe, a Secret Service veteran, took over from his predecessor, Kimberly Cheatle, who resigned last week.

You can watch his comments in the clip above.

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent, reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

There are multiple house committees launching individual investigations into the assassination attempt. But crucially a bipartisan task force has been established to get answers.

In a deeply polarised Congress, it is notable that this taskforce has been created by Republican Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries and approved by a 416-0 vote on the House floor. It will take the lead of an investigation and will have subpoena power.

Similar commissions in the past have provoked tensions - the 6 January committee for example to investigate Donald Trump's role in the Capitol riots - which Republicans were dead set against.

Only two Republicans served on it in the end and were ostracised by the party.

This 13 July task force will have three main goals: understand the security and communication breakdowns that day in Butler, ensure accountability and prevent the Secret Service from failing like this again in the future.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

Facing questions from Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley, Rowe - for the first time publicly - acknowledges that the Secret Service failed to deploy a counter-drone system in time, potentially with fatal results.

According to Rowe, the Secret Service was unable to deploy the "counter unmanned aerial system" until later on in the day - several hours after Thomas Matthew Crooks flew his drone over the site - because of cellular connectivity issues.

"That is something that has cost me a lot of sleep, because of the eventual outcome," Rowe says. "It is something I have struggled with. I don't understand."

"I have no explanation... I feel as though we could have found him, could have maybe stopped him on that particular day. He would have decided this isn't the day to do it, because law enforcement just found [him] flying his drone."

Rowe adds that drones are flown near protected locations "all the time".

"We go out and we talk to them," he adds. "We ascertain what their intentions are."

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent, reporting from Capitol Hill

It's worth remembering at this point that the mission of the US Secret Service is about prevention, not about investigating an assassination attempt - so this is the worst spotlight for the agency to be in.

In terms of their response to the shooting, the agency can probably try to salvage some of its reputation and by saying their actions were standard: Donald Trump's security detail covered him as soon as shots were fired and he ducked down, and agents waited to hear the shooter was neutralized before moving Trump off stage.

But the lingering and damaging question remains: how did Thomas Matthew Crooks outfox the Secret Service? How did the 20-year-old get on a nearby rooftop and have a clear line of sight to the former president in the first place?

The questions demand an answer that not one person has been able to provide yet.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, EPA

One of the things that has caught my eye in the first hour of this hearing is how enthralled the audience seemed to be - a notably different scene from last week's hearing over on the House of Representatives.

At last week's hearing - which took place one day before Kim Cheatle resigned - audience members seemed, at best, a little bored.

As the hearing wore on, I saw multiple young Hill staffers dozing off, texting or scrolling through Instagram.

That's not the case today. The audience, which again is mostly comprised of young staffers, is paying close attention. Many are jotting down notes, and some are nodding their heads quietly as Rowe speaks.

Part of it is the different tone of the hearing. While Cheatle was on the defensive for much of her hearing, Rowe is clearly ready to push back at Senators, his booming voice seemingly overpowering them at times.

He's clearly well prepared for this hearing and seems to have counterpoints ready for much of the criticism he's taken from the lawmakers.

Alex Lederman
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe is striking a different tone from his predecessor Kimberly Cheatle, who resigned last week.

Lawmakers attacked Cheatle at a similar hearing for what they saw as a failure to cooperate and for insisting on her strength in the role.

But Rowe came out earlier and immediately said the Secret Service’s performance on the day of the assassination attempt “made me ashamed”.

He promised lawmakers “full cooperation” with their inquiries into what happened that day.

Rowe currently only holds the Secret Service’s top job in an acting fashion. But seeing the poor reception Cheatle’s testimony received – and her subsequent resignation – he’s likely looking to draw a contrast and leave a different impression.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Getty Images

Standing in stark contrast to Kim Cheatle's testimony last week, Rowe has repeatedly - and at times forcefully - suggested that local police did not properly do their jobs when they failed to secure the rooftop of the AGR building in Butler.

Armed with a placard depicting the crime scene, Rowe says that, in a "face-to-face" interaction ahead of the rally, the Secret Service was "told that building was going to be covered".

When he inspected the crime scene himself, Rowe says that he "will not, and cannot, understand why there was not better coverage or at least somebody looking at that roofline".

Ultimately, however, he acknowledges that responsibility rests with the Secret Service.

"This is a failure of the Secret Service," he says.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Facing questions from lawmakers, Rowe vows that Secret Service agents will "be held accountable" if they are found to have committed "policy violations" before and during the rally in Butler.

"They will be held to our table of penalties," Rowe says. "Which will include up to termination."

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent, reporting from Capitol Hill

Before the assassination attempt, more than half of Americans had a favourable view of the Secret Service. They rated it as second to only the US Postal Service.

But one poll shortly after July 13th a CBS/ YouGov poll, external suggested only 20% had confidence in the agency.

In a rare sign of political agreement, it found most Republicans (87%) and most Democrats (59%) believe the Secret Service could have done more to prevent the assassination attempt.

Donald Trump himself has praised the Secret Service in its quick response during the attack in getting him off the stage, but hasn't commented on the criticism of the agency in the run up.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

So far, Rowe has taken multiple questions from lawmakers on the Secret Service's resources, especially around hiring and personnel.

"Do you need more money?," asks South Carolina's Lindsey Graham.

"Everyone will take more resources," Rowe says.

Graham is also asking about the service's hiring practices, wondering aloud what can be done to hire more people and ease the strain on those already serving.

"What do we need to do to make it easier to hire people without lowering our standards? It's a tough job," Graham says.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

Next up is Paul Abbate, the FBI's deputy director.

In his own opening remarks, Abbate notes that the Butler shooting is still the subject of an ongoing investigation, both as an assassination attempt and an act of domestic terrorism.

The investigation, he explains, is still very much focused on identifying a motive, as well as the hours and days ahead of when Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed onto the now notorious rooftop in Butler.

To date, no motive has been identified, although investigators now have a fairly detailed picture of Crooks' activities ahead of the shooting, beginning with his registration to the rally on 6 July.

Many of these details were revealed to media yesterday.

One new detail is that Crooks maintained a social media account in 2019, in which investigators believe he expressed "antisemitic and anti-immigration themes to espouse political violence".

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

We’re still learning about exactly what happened in the hours and minutes leading up to the shooting.

We do, however, know exactly how the incident unfolded and how the Secret Service and local police responded.

Donald Trump took the stage at around 18:03 local time, and began speaking at about 18:05.

About six minutes later at 18:11, Trump turned to his right, gesturing at a chart regarding migrant crossings at the US-Mexico border.

Around this time, witnesses told the BBC that they informed police that they saw a man on the roof of a nearby building. Some videos taken at the scene show attendees pointing at the building, and in at least one video someone can be heard saying “he’s got a gun”.

At this point, a gunshot can be heard, prompting Trump to flinch and reach for his ear. He ducks behind a lectern as more shots are fired. Several more shots are fired as Secret Service agents swarm the stage. The shooter was “neutralised” by a Secret Service counter-sniper team around this time.

Secret Service agents escorted Trump from the stage, with the former president raising his fist in the air.

At about 18:13, Secret Service agents escorted Trump into a vehicle, with the former president raising his fist in the air towards the crowd again.

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent, reporting from Capitol Hill

Rowe will be expected to provide details on safety measures for the Secret Service's future operations.

We are about 20 days away from the DNC (Democratic National Convention), and there are big questions on how the Secret Service plans to keep attendees safe.

Especially as there will be former presidents there.

It will take place from 19-22 August in Chicago, and like the Republican National Convention earlier this month - which happened days after the assassination attempt - security will be tighter than ever.

We can expect numerous restricted zones and heavy road closures.

The Secret Service has already said it's confident in its operations for Chicago, but expect this bipartisan committee to push for more clarity on that.

Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois has asked about security for the DNC. Both Ronald Rowe and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate say they have been preparing for a year for it - they obviously can't go into detail.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

We're now hearing from Ronald Rowe, the acting director of the US Secret Service.

In his remarks, Rowe immediately acknowledges that the Butler shooting was a "failure, on multiple levels".

At the same time, he says he's "extremely proud" of the teams on the ground in Butler who quickly sprung into action when shots rang out at the Trump rally.

Rowe says that the service has already "identified gaps in our security", prompting "corrective actions" to prevent such incidents from taking place ever again.

In the future, every event security plan will be "thoroughly vetted" before being implemented.

Additionally, drones will increasingly be used to identify potential rooftop attack points.

"I have heard your calls for accountability, and I take them very seriously," Rowe says, adding that the service is reviewing the actions of its employees.

Those found to have acted against regulations will be subject to disciplinary proceedings, he adds.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

In their opening remarks, Senators here at the hearing have so far provided a glimpse at the questions they hope to answer - namely, how this happened, and who is to blame.

Senator Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, says that the Butler shooting was "an attack on our democracy".

"Americans should be able to attend a political rally and express their political beliefs without fear of violence," Peters says.

"And political candidates for our nation's highest office should be confident their safety will never be compromised for their service."

South Carolina's Lindsey Graham - a Republican - says in his own opening remarks that "somebody has got to be fired".

Several of the Senators have made clear they want to see someone held responsible for what happened - beyond resignations.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Today is not the only Capitol Hill hearing focused on the events in Butler on 13 July.

Last week there were two, including a combative 23 July hearing in which then Secret Service director Kim Cheatle appeared before the House Oversight Committee.

Over six gruelling hours of testimonies and questioning, lawmakers from both sides of the US political spectrum called on Cheatle to step down in the wake of the assassination attempt of Donald Trump.

The hearing was bruising for Cheatle, as lawmakers ridiculed her answers and the lack of information the agency had made public about the shooting - but it was also a rare show of bipartisanship on an increasingly polarised Capitol Hill.

After the hearing, the leading Republican and Democrat from the committee - James Comer and Jamie Raskin - sent a letter to Cheatle that concretely laid out their belief that she should vacate her office.

The next day, she resigned.

Read more about that hearing here.

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent, reporting from Capitol Hill

Ronald Rowe – new acting director of the Secret Service - arrives at this joint hearing hoping to present himself differently to his predecessor Kimberly Cheatle.

She resigned as head of the Secret Service last week after refusing to provide clear answers to Congress over security lapses despite saying the agency failed in its job to protect former President Donald Trump.

Rowe - who has now stepped up to lead - has been thrown into the forefront of the this investigation to face questions from lawmakers.

He will want to prove he is the man for the job. Rowe has already visited Butler, the scene of the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, and is expected to say one of his first actions as acting director is to better understand how the agency failed.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Capitol Hill

I'm now inside the hearing room, a massive space in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, just a block over from the US Capitol.

As the hearing gets underway, the room is packed. Lawmakers have taken their seats, and from where I'm sitting I could see see Arkansas Republican Tom Cotton whispering to a staff member, shaking his head as they look over a document.

Not including the 20 or so journalists who are in the room, there are about 100 or 120 spectators here, sitting on uncomfortable black leather chairs lined up neatly in rows facing the senators at the front of the room. A few rows have been left empty at the back of the room for late arrivals.

In the back of the room, 10 Capitol police officers are milling about.

The hearing, a Hill staffer told me yesterday, has attracted significant public attention. It was originally slated to be in a smaller room, but moved to this room in Dirksen to accommodate everyone.

The Senate hearing into the possible security failures that led to the shooting at Donald Trump's campaign rally earlier this month has begun.

You can watch live at the top of this page.

Stick with us as we bring you the latest.