The questions are always the same.
Whether they are in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy that struck the northeastern U.S.
Or the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Or after another attempt to assassinate a former president.
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Do they have enough money and resources?
Will the federal government provide enough money to help New York City and the Northeast recover after a massive storm that tore through America’s most densely populated corridor? Landslides destroyed roads and bridges in Vermont. The storm submerged subway stations in the Big Apple.
How much will it cost to rebuild the bridge in Baltimore? The bill will come in a year or two.
And so the question now turns to the Secret Service, since a gunman tried to shoot former President Trump as he played golf at Trump International in Palm Beach, Florida. Does the service have the money? Does it need more resources?
Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said his agency has “done more with fewer resources than it has for decades.” Rowe added that “we have urgent needs right now.”
Acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe Jr. addresses the media at a press conference with updates on the investigation into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, West Palm Beach, Florida, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (MEGA for Fox News Digital)
President Biden agrees.
“One thing I want to make clear,” the President said. “The (Secret) Service needs more support, and I believe if they truly need more services, Congress should address their needs.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also reacted.
“We all need to do our part to make sure this kind of thing never happens again. That means Congress has a responsibility to make sure the Secret Service and all law enforcement agencies have the resources they need to do their jobs,” Schumer said. “If the Secret Service needs more resources, we’re prepared to provide them. Possibly in an upcoming funding agreement.”
This is a reference to the interim spending bill to avoid a government shutdown expected later this month.
But on Fox, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., doubted it was solely about financial resources. Johnson argued it was a specific issue involving former President Trump. And it was a human resources problem.
“He’s been attacked the most. He’s been threatened the most. Probably more than when he was in the Oval Office,” Johnson said on Fox. “So we’re demanding in the House that he has every resource available to him, and we’ll provide more resources if necessary. I don’t think it’s a funding issue. I think it’s a manpower allocation issue.”
By Tuesday, Johnson had shelved the idea of giving the Secret Service additional funding.
“We don’t want to spend any more money on a broken system,” Johnson said.
Other conservatives called for increasing funding levels for the Secret Service.
Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office, Acting Director of the U.S. Secret Service Ronald Roe Jr. and Sheriff Rick Bradshaw of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office attend a press conference regarding an apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in West Palm Beach, Florida, on September 16, 2024. The FBI and U.S. Secret Service, along with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, are investigating the incident, which the FBI said “appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump” while he was playing golf at Trump International Golf Club. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
“We don’t need to spend more money on the Secret Service. We need new leadership,” Rep. Mark Alford, a Republican-Mo., said on Fox Business.
“We need answers more than we need money for the Secret Service. In the real world, when you don’t do your job, you get fired. In the world of Washington, common sense is illegal. When you don’t do your job, you get more money because obviously you need it. You don’t have enough,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. “What the Secret Service needs to do right now is simple: do a better job.”
There was talk that lawmakers might try to inject cash into the Secret Service by adding it to the still-to-be-decided interim spending bill, known as the CR, to avoid a government shutdown that is expected in two weeks.
Rep. Corey Mills, R-Florida, who has called on former President Trump to ditch the Secret Service and use private security, denounced the idea.
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“The American people are not stupid. They see it for what it is. They’re trying to add shiny new bills to this CR to get it passed, when the reality is that this really shouldn’t happen. We need to stop this irresponsible spending,” Mills said on Fox Business.
“No. No. No. No. We don’t need more money,” said Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan. “They have enough staff. They have enough money. They need to prioritize where to put these Secret Service agents.”
But, finding the right people – and assigning them the right tasks in the right place – isn’t easy.
“You can’t just hire them right off the street,” argued Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill.
Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testified at a House hearing before resigning after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, that she needed 9,500 employees. But the agency only had 8,000 employees.
US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee about the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a campaign event in Pennsylvania, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, July 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
Still, some Republicans were more sympathetic to the cash infusion for the agency.
“It seems like they need more resources,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., adding that former President Trump had suggested they needed more information. “There’s only one way to do that: having enough money to hire enough agents. If you can even find enough people to do that.”
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., chairs the Senate panel that manages funding for the Secret Service. He argues that the threat environment is so dangerous that lawmakers want the agency to be “creative” about mobilizing appropriate resources to protect protected individuals.
The House is on the verge of rejecting an interim spending plan introduced by Johnson to fund the government until next spring. This bill also requires people to prove their citizenship to vote. The measure probably fails. So the Senate may respond with a bill directly to fund the government – including some aid to the Secret Service.
Johnson denies that the House will be “stuck” by the Senate if the bill falters. But remember, members of Jane’s Addiction get along better than some House Republicans. Johnson doesn’t have the votes to pass his own bill. So, if the Senate sends the legislation along with assistance from the Secret Service, the House may have to accept it to avoid a government shutdown.
“If increasing funding is part of the solution, I’m all for it,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY. “It would be beyond stupid politically for us to (shut down the government) right before an election because, of course, we’d get the blame.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY, speaks to reporters after meeting with fellow Republicans at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (AP)
So it’s the same question that arises after every crisis: Can money solve the problem? It’s natural that Congress often responds with money. The spending authority is the ultimate power on Capitol Hill.
Would more dollars help?
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If Congress spends the money and there are no security breaches, lawmakers will argue that the extra money was worth it.
But if Congress spends the money and something else happens, it will probably spend the money. Even more Wealth.
