US House leaders open bipartisan probe into Trump assassination attempt

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Senior leaders in the US House of Representatives announced Tuesday the formation of a bipartisan task force to investigate the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

"The security failures that allowed an assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life are shocking. In response to bipartisan demands for answers, we are announcing a House Task Force made up of seven Republicans and six Democrats to thoroughly investigate the matter," House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement.

The panel will be granted congressional subpoena authority and "will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again," they added.

It will attempt to determine what went wrong July 13 when a 20-year-old gunman, identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, opened fire as Trump was holding a rally in the state of Pennsylvania that injured the former president but killed a rallygoer and critically injured two others.

The task force will also seek to ensure accountability for security lapses and seek to prevent future failures. It will ultimately make recommendations to federal agencies and recommend any needed legislation to carry out reforms.

The House is slated to vote this week on a resolution to formally establish the panel.