Opinion | The author's opinion does not necessarily reflect Sarah Palin's view.
Rep. Lou Correa, a top House Democrat, highlighted concerns about interagency coordination and communication among law enforcement following the recent assassination attempt on former President Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania.
He noted that local law enforcement officers expressed uncertainty about their command structure and felt apprehensive about speaking publicly.
“A couple of folks there kind of hinted to me that everybody locally is not comfortable going out and giving their opinion,” Rep. Lou Correa said. “But one individual said he’s not quite sure who was in charge.”
Correa commended Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Col. Christopher Paris for his transparency during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing and called for further discussions with local officials to better understand the incident.
He emphasized the need for improved collaboration between the Secret Service and local public safety agencies, citing significant changes in security protocols over the past 40 years.
“There was a local supervisor or council member who said that we need to talk some more. You guys (Congress) need to hear more about what happened and what didn’t happen. They weren’t here [in Washington]. We need to get their opinions and thoughts. Those are the people that were where the rubber meets the road, so to speak,” he said.
“The local police and state troopers really are force multipliers, and, in this case, there are some things you need to work on to fix the process,” Correa added.
The best thing to do is go “back to the drawing board and really start kicking the tires in terms of guidance and Secret Service and what they do and how they address and work with local public safety agencies.”
“It’s been 40 years since we had an incident like this,” he said.
“I think over these last 40 years, a lot has changed; protocols maybe, situations, circumstances. And I think we need to ask some tough questions of the Secret Service, not because they’ve done a bad job, but rather because they’re expected to score 100%,” Correa said.
While addressing Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s resignation, Correa remarked that it would not resolve underlying issues and focused on seeking effective solutions.
Additionally, he commented on Vice President Kamala Harris’s rising support as the presumptive Democratic nominee, indicating that her record as California’s attorney general could resonate positively with voters.
“She apparently did very poor in [Monday’s] hearing. I was not there,” he said. “Her resignation does nothing to fix the problem. I’m going to focus on fixing the problem.”
“The issue isn’t what elected Congressman Lou’s reaction is. I think the better gauge of the answer to your question is look at the enthusiasm,” Correa said.
“That is something totally unexpected,” he said.
“Now, as Congressman Lou or former State Senator Lou, I can tell you, I worked with Kamala when she was attorney general. I saw her work on issues like solving sex crimes by funding DNA rape test kits, working on those issues. I saw her work, and I’m excited because her record will be presented to people in this country.”
“You’ve got a former attorney general, former top cop of California, now running on her record. So, it’s going to be a good refreshing change in terms of the dynamic.”
