Secret Service calls for new security arrangements for Trump’s golfing: Report

The 78-year-old former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s love for golf may come with a hefty security price tag after the Secret Service thwarted a second assassination attempt on him in less than two months. The head of the US Secret Service told Trump that if he wants to continue playing golf, new security arrangements will be needed, according to a Reuters report.
In a private meeting with Secret Service acting director Ronald Rowe, Trump reportedly questioned Rowe about the safety of continuing to play golf, prompting Rowe to suggest that the golf course at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland would be easier to secure due to its military status.
This advice came after the latest assassination attempt occurred on Sunday at Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, where Secret Service agents fired on Ryan Wesley Routh, the would-be assassin, after spotting the barrel of his gun poking through the fence.
Routh, who had been hiding under the cover of darkness for nearly 12 hours in an apparent attempt to assassinate Donald Trump, was later arrested by local police.
Before this assassination attempt, Trump had previously faced another assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. That attempt led to the resignation of the then Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle and Ronald Rowe taking on the role as an interim measure.
Despite the heightened threat after the second assassination attempt, Trump assured supporters during a phone interview with Fox News that his security detail was being strengthened.
“We’ve long requested more people… I think we are getting it now. Somebody told me that they will be providing more people now,” Trump told interviewer Sean Hannity, as reported by Reuters.
A Secret Service spokesperson, Melissa McKenzie, emphasised that Trump is receiving the highest level of protection.
“We will continue to evaluate and adjust our specific protective measures and methodology based on each location and situation,” McKenzie said in a statement on Tuesday, as reported by Reuters.
However, West Palm Beach Sheriff Ric Bradshaw pointed out that “Trump’s security detail was not as tight as that of a sitting president”.