House Republican Leader Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster) said Friday he has introduced House Resolution 501, a resolution to form a House Select Committee to probe the actions and response of state and local law enforcement relative to the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, which took place in Butler on July 13.

The purely bipartisan Select Committee on the Trump Assassination Attempt, to be comprised of three Republicans and three Democrats, would be charged with probing how state and local law enforcement planned, responded and coordinated with federal agencies at the Trump campaign event on July 13. A report from the select committee would be due no later than Nov. 30.

“One Pennsylvanian died and two were critically wounded as an assassin nearly took the life of a former president and the nominee of a major political party in the upcoming election. We must ask the questions of why and what we can do to prevent this from happening in the future,” Cutler said.

Pennsylvania is a political battleground state that will be the epicenter of many high-level campaign events during the remainder of the 2024 election season.

“As federal law enforcement increasingly relies on state and local partners to supplement security protocols, it is imperative we identify what happened from a state and local perspective on July 13, as we seek to perfect our effectiveness at keeping citizens and candidates safe as they host campaign events in Pennsylvania,” Cutler said.

In addition, with an eye toward major events in Pennsylvania in recognition of the Semiquincentennial, the select committee will identify any necessary operational changes needed for state and local law enforcement to provide security support in such events.

The select committee would be charged to work with state and local agency partners to identify how best practices can be updated, implemented, and successfully deployed across law enforcement entities to ensure the safety and security of the public and highly visible individuals visiting Pennsylvania.

“The purpose of this committee is not to assign blame, but rather give state and local law enforcement a voice so we can collectively identify what happened and learn to improve upon current practices,” Cutler said.

“Government is charged with protecting the health, safety and welfare of the citizens. As more high-profile events are coming to the Commonwealth in the coming months, we must use this undeniable tragedy to learn from our current practices, understand how we can get better, and take the necessary steps to ensure this does not happen in Pennsylvania again.”

Contributed article