Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe and Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX) got into a shouting match during a Capitol Hill hearing on Thursday regarding the assassination attempts on President-elect Donald Trump and Secret Service security failures.
The clash began when Fallon asked Rowe if he recognized a photo showing Rowe standing in the row behind President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance, and others at a New York 9/11 ceremony.
.@ChadPergram asks about heated exchange: "Doesn't that distract from the bipartisanship? All people are going to remember is this shouting.
@RepPatFallon: "That's on the director because he started screaming…I think it was vanity project. I think he was auditioning for the… pic.twitter.com/iEM2uawyyd
— CSPAN (@cspan) December 5, 2024
Rowe, who took over as acting Secret Service director when Kimberly Cheatle resigned from the directorship amid backlash over the security failure underlying the attempted assassination of Trump, said he did recognize the photo and confirmed that it showed an event at Ground Zero. Asked by Fallon who in security is usually closest to the president for such an event, Fallon said the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the detail.
“Were you the special agent in charge of the detail that day?” queried Fallon.
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“Actually, let me address this — could you please, staff, leave — oh, no leave the one up with the circle around me. Thank you — so actually, congressman, what you’re not seeing is the SAC of the detail out of the picture’s view. And that is the day where we remember the more than 3,000 people that have died on 9/11. I actually responded to Ground Zero, I was there going through the ashes of the World Trade Center. I was there at Fresh Kills [landfill] —” Rowe said.
Fallon interrupted Rowe, shouting, “I’m not asking you that!” Rowe yelled back at the congressman, exclaiming that he was present to “show respect” for the Secret Service member who was killed on 9/11.
“That’s a bunch of horse hockey,” Fallon exclaimed.
The heated back-and-forth continued with Rowe and Fallon accusing each other of playing politics. As Rowe claimed Fallon was “out of line” and Fallon demanded the witness not “bully” him, Task Force Chairman Mike Kelly (R-PA) sought to restore order and repeatedly banged his gavel.
“Do you know why you were there?” Fallon said. “Because you wanted to be visible because you’re auditioning for this job that you’re not going to get. You endangered President Biden’s life, Vice President Harris’ life because you put those agents out of position. Did you have a radio with you? Did you wear a vest? Did you have a weapon? No.”
Rowe replied: “I did, sir, and you are out of line.”
After the hearing, Fox News senior congressional correspondent Chad Pergram asked Fallon about the clash.
Fallon said the shouting match was “on the director because he started screaming” and would not answer questions. The congressman later emphasized that he thought that Rowe positioned himself right behind Biden and Trump at the 9/11 ceremony as part of some “vanity project” because he was “auditioning for the job.”
