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What New Bodycam Audio Reveals About the Trump Assassination Attempt
there is still fallout from what happened during the Trump assassination attempt about a month ago. Joining us is news nation national correspondent Elizabeth Pran. Elizabeth, tell us about these latest videotapes which have been released by local police. Hey, it's been fascinating Libby really to see the development. It's been sort of a drip drip drip for the past couple of weeks. So are we getting more answers to our questions today? We are, but are there still a number of unanswered questions about maybe protective advancements in place or the chain of command and security prior to? That is really where we still have a number of questions that are unanswered. So with the new body cam footage that we are seeing today, we can see that it's very disorganized. It's very dramatic, very chaotic. You can hear officers really feeling about helpless. So there's five state officers and they're from different municipalities. So they're not necessarily just Butler Township police officers that were surrounding the warehouse where the government had climbed up really shimmied up this warehouse during the now very famous campaign rally. So we're getting these elements that are painting a picture for us, right? And the body cam coupled with the dash cam and of course the eyewitness accounts and we've learned more and more about the text messages show the different response by the state and local versus the federal security and where the communication was and where it was in. But we're getting a more clear picture of the timeline. So Libby, if you look at some of the body cam footage that we're seeing, it's starting around 6.08 PM, you can hear officers identifying the threat. And a lot of it is beeped out, but you can hear them say the threat one is down, the threat one is down, we need to secure the rest of the area and you can hear it beeped out. And then you hear one officer say, I told them the Secret Service, I told them that on Tuesday. And so what we're getting is a sense that the local law enforcement had really a sense of hopelessness at that moment. There was about, you know, three minutes between 6.08 and then obviously the subject was neutralized at 6.11 PM Eastern time where they were doing their best, but it was very, very chaotic, Libby. Well, the head of the Secret Service at that time has already resigned. Her replacement who I gather is temporary in testimony said something to the effect that no one from local police had told the Secret Service of any threat. Now this seems to dispute this. That is really the disconnect because you have this body cam footage, which I mentioned is new information over the past 24 hours where it is on camera, someone is saying, I notified them of the threat on Tuesday. So what was the threat? Was the threat the building is perhaps a vulnerability? Was it that they had eyes on this man prior to? So that is where we're thinking to ourselves, okay, so what did you notify them on Tuesday? Now the Secret Service has it, as you mentioned, they have answered questions. They have held press conferences and they have spoken to members of Congress. But what we are hearing from those who have resigned is, is there clarity on what I learned is the term protective advance? So what exactly was up the chain of command prior to the event that everything was secure? So you have on camera the local law enforcement saying this building is not secure. I told the Secret Service and your Secret Service saying, well, we didn't know that that building wasn't secured. That's up to local law enforcement. So what your question is, is exactly what our question is. These are the unanswered questions that I was talking about. And it continues to be sort of the strip, drip, drip of information. But this body cam footage is something that we just hadn't seen before, right? It's about two and a half minutes long. A lot of it has beeped out because there's profanities, but it puts that timeline together for us, the 608 to 611 PM when he was neutralized. And as I mentioned at one point, the gunman making eye contact with an officer who then quickly ducked and then the assassination attempts took place. And then we know that he was neutralized at 611 PM Libby. And the other thing that stood out to me when I watched that video is somebody said, where are they? And one of the other officers said, well, they're inside the building. And I assumed by that they were talking about Secret Service agents. And that's a valid point because when I mentioned when you and I first got on a phone, it was disorganized and chaotic. It was because there were people in the woods. There were people inside the building. There were people trying to shimmy up the building. There was no ladder or easy access point. And then, of course, you have the testimony of people in the crowd who were yelling that they could see him on the rooftop. So when this initially happened, we had the information that there was a man on the roof, but we didn't get the understanding of what was taking place around the warehouse. And now we're learning that there was all of these men and women trying to get a better understanding of the threat that they could all identify, but they weren't able to neutralize. So when you say that they're inside the building, there also is people, as I mentioned, in the perimeter trying to figure out where this threat is. If that makes sense. It makes sense, but it doesn't make sense, Elizabeth. And, you know, I mean, so we've had the head of the Secret Service Resign. Who else is going to be responsible? Are they all just going to shrug their shoulders and say, well, the person in charge is already gone. So we just move on from this point or will other heads roll? Well, and I think that is so valid. And we've spoken to experts throughout the day, and they state us that they do feel as if there are existing problems. So is it retention year after year? Is it that the agency has suffered losses of personnel and they need to be very forthcoming, identify those and how they're going to remediate? And then also the information sharing. So the American public as taxpayers, and of course, as people who are just very concerned about our leaders, are probably thinking to themselves, okay, so what is the information sharing between local, state, and federal law forces when they're on scenes like this? Does that need updating? To answer your question, I think all of us are saying, okay, you're right. We have seen the head of the Secret Service Resign. So what's next? How can you assure us that these men and women who make decisions for us with our tax paying dollars are safe? So to answer your question, I think that we're all sort of wondering if more heads will roll. But all of those questions, we are hearing from former law enforcement, former experts, you know, retired FBI supervisory, a lot of people in roles asking these exact same questions. And just as an aside, Elizabeth, I don't know if you saw that, but there was a picture that kind of made the rounds after the assassination attempt of the female Secret Service agents. And when JD Vance was on the ground here in Eau Claire in Wisconsin just the other day, at least one of those same agents was part of his detail. That may mean nothing, but I just think a lot of people are talking about it, and it is an interesting part of this story. I think it is an interesting part of the story, and I think Americans are allowed to ask these questions, and they're allowed to look at photographs and say it's about business, right? It's about saving lives. What are you capable of? Are you capable of being in that position? I think those are fair questions, and I do think the Secret Service knows that. I mean, we've seen them be more forthcoming with answering questions in the public, but I don't think that's going to stop, and I also don't think it's enough to answer your question. I think we will be hearing more from them because there is more criticism, and I saw that photograph as well, and I saw the criticism online, and I think they have to answer that. Elizabeth Pran, National Correspondent for News Nation. Pleasure to talk with you today.