Human Events Daily host Jack Posobiec spoke with Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) on Wednesday about what Hawley described as a widening pattern of security breakdowns surrounding political events in the United States, including recent assassination attempts targeting President Donald Trump and the White House Correspondents’ Dinner incident.
Hawley called for a full investigation into federal security agencies, saying Americans “deserve a full accounting” of what has gone wrong.
“We need to know exactly what happened, what the security protocols were, what was followed, what wasn't,” Hawley said. “And we also need to know, in light of what happened in Butler, what happened in the fall of 2024. This is the third attempted assassination on the life of the president in the last two years.”
He added that the situation demands transparency from federal agencies, particularly the Secret Service. “I think that the American public deserves a full accounting of what is going on at our security agencies,” Hawley said. “Have the changes been implemented that should have been after Butler and after the second attempt on Trump's life? And what's going on now internally?”
Hawley told Posobiec he has spoken directly with whistleblowers inside the Secret Service over a period of years, describing internal failures and coordination issues. “I think we need to know,” Hawley said. “I think the American people deserve full and total transparency. I'm not sure, frankly, they've ever gotten it on Butler.”
Posobiec, referencing his own reporting and a book he wrote on the Butler assassination attempt, pointed to what he described as operational failures in that incident, including staffing and command decisions.
“There was lack of communication, lack of coordination, lack of planning,” Posobiec said. “You had an agent that was put in charge who had only graduated a few years before from FLETC.”
“Someone who just simply wasn't ready to maintain the task of a president, or in this case, a former president who has a higher degree of threat than any president we've seen in recent history,” Posobiec said.
Hawley said whistleblowers had described similar concerns, including failures in coordination between federal and local law enforcement. “I went myself to Butler,” Hawley said. “I talked personally with local law enforcement who told me they did not get any coordination from the Secret Service at the time.” He added, “They were told that they were supposed to stand down.”
Hawley also questioned whether corrective reforms had been implemented since earlier incidents. “Is the Secret Service getting the resources it needs? Has it had the reforms made that were needed?” he said. “We just can't have it in this country be a fact that if you go to a political event, your life is in danger.”
During the conversation, Hawley also described what he called a broader “culture of violence,” warning that political tensions are contributing to increased risks. Posobiec said, “We can't allow assassinations to breathe into our culture." He added, “It's the most corrosive form of cancer to any political society.”
Hawley pointed to what he sees as inconsistent attitudes toward speech and violence. “You have this very paradoxical situation where actual political speech, words, is thought to be harmful,” Hawley said. “And yet actual violence, shooting people, is becoming the norm.”
Hawley said the United States must return to a stronger emphasis on open political debate. “We need to recover a healthy and robust appreciation for the constitutional principle of open political debate,” he said. “We don't appeal from ballots to bullets.”
Posobiec echoed that concern, linking it to recent political violence. “You can't get censorship without escalation,” Posobiec said. “Instead of soft beans, they'll choose harsher means.”
Hawley agreed, saying restrictions on speech can contribute to instability. “If you treat words as violence, what you get is more actual violence,” he said.
The Missouri senator also criticized what he described as resistance from federal agencies toward congressional oversight. “For months, they stonewalled us,” Hawley said. “The Secret Service stonewalled us. This has become a pattern. I think we've got to break that pattern.”
He said Congress must now take a more aggressive oversight role. “Congress needs to do its job,” Hawley said. “We need to have hearings. We need to get the facts out there for the American people.”
“This was not one Republican event or a Trump event or something like that,” Posobiec said. “This is going to be an issue for everyone.”
“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “At the end of the day, it comes down to safety.”
He added: “We need to make sure the public knows exactly what's going on, that there's full and total transparency.”
Hawley called for a full investigation into federal security agencies, saying Americans “deserve a full accounting” of what has gone wrong.
“We need to know exactly what happened, what the security protocols were, what was followed, what wasn't,” Hawley said. “And we also need to know, in light of what happened in Butler, what happened in the fall of 2024. This is the third attempted assassination on the life of the president in the last two years.”
He added that the situation demands transparency from federal agencies, particularly the Secret Service. “I think that the American public deserves a full accounting of what is going on at our security agencies,” Hawley said. “Have the changes been implemented that should have been after Butler and after the second attempt on Trump's life? And what's going on now internally?”
Hawley told Posobiec he has spoken directly with whistleblowers inside the Secret Service over a period of years, describing internal failures and coordination issues. “I think we need to know,” Hawley said. “I think the American people deserve full and total transparency. I'm not sure, frankly, they've ever gotten it on Butler.”
Posobiec, referencing his own reporting and a book he wrote on the Butler assassination attempt, pointed to what he described as operational failures in that incident, including staffing and command decisions.
“There was lack of communication, lack of coordination, lack of planning,” Posobiec said. “You had an agent that was put in charge who had only graduated a few years before from FLETC.”
“Someone who just simply wasn't ready to maintain the task of a president, or in this case, a former president who has a higher degree of threat than any president we've seen in recent history,” Posobiec said.
Hawley said whistleblowers had described similar concerns, including failures in coordination between federal and local law enforcement. “I went myself to Butler,” Hawley said. “I talked personally with local law enforcement who told me they did not get any coordination from the Secret Service at the time.” He added, “They were told that they were supposed to stand down.”
Hawley also questioned whether corrective reforms had been implemented since earlier incidents. “Is the Secret Service getting the resources it needs? Has it had the reforms made that were needed?” he said. “We just can't have it in this country be a fact that if you go to a political event, your life is in danger.”
During the conversation, Hawley also described what he called a broader “culture of violence,” warning that political tensions are contributing to increased risks. Posobiec said, “We can't allow assassinations to breathe into our culture." He added, “It's the most corrosive form of cancer to any political society.”
Hawley pointed to what he sees as inconsistent attitudes toward speech and violence. “You have this very paradoxical situation where actual political speech, words, is thought to be harmful,” Hawley said. “And yet actual violence, shooting people, is becoming the norm.”
Hawley said the United States must return to a stronger emphasis on open political debate. “We need to recover a healthy and robust appreciation for the constitutional principle of open political debate,” he said. “We don't appeal from ballots to bullets.”
Posobiec echoed that concern, linking it to recent political violence. “You can't get censorship without escalation,” Posobiec said. “Instead of soft beans, they'll choose harsher means.”
Hawley agreed, saying restrictions on speech can contribute to instability. “If you treat words as violence, what you get is more actual violence,” he said.
The Missouri senator also criticized what he described as resistance from federal agencies toward congressional oversight. “For months, they stonewalled us,” Hawley said. “The Secret Service stonewalled us. This has become a pattern. I think we've got to break that pattern.”
He said Congress must now take a more aggressive oversight role. “Congress needs to do its job,” Hawley said. “We need to have hearings. We need to get the facts out there for the American people.”
“This was not one Republican event or a Trump event or something like that,” Posobiec said. “This is going to be an issue for everyone.”
“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “At the end of the day, it comes down to safety.”
He added: “We need to make sure the public knows exactly what's going on, that there's full and total transparency.”
