Rep. Pat Fallon, a Texas Republican, who got into a screaming match with former Acting Secret Service Director Ron Rowe during a House hearing in early December, spearheaded a letter sent to Curran Friday, lauding his selection while pressing him to usher in “dramatic change” to the agency.
“Congratulations on your recent appointment by President Trump to serve as the next director of the U.S. Secret Service,” wrote Fallon, a member of the House Task Force. “As you know well, this is both a great honor and a great responsibility. Your courageous actions on July 13, 2024, at the Butler, Pa. rally, while serving as President Trump’s special agent in charge, demonstrate your superb commitment to your agency’s zero-fail mission.”
Five other Republicans on the Task Force signed the letter, including its chairman, Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania, and Reps. Clay Higgins of Louisiana, Mark Green of Tennessee, David Joyce of Ohio, and Laurel Lee of Florida.
Curran, who headed Trump’s campaign security detail for more than two years, was one of the first agents to leap on the then-GOP nominee and cover him with a human shield amid flying bullets. The efforts may have helped save Trump’s life, even as Trump pushed through the protection to rise from the floor, pump his fist, and shout, “Fight, fight, fight!” He also repeatedly requested additional security assets for Trump, but was rebuffed by USSS leaders until the FBI briefed them on an Iranian plot against Trump’s life in the days leading up to the Butler rally.
The House Republicans placed the blame for the “unacceptable failures” that led to the Butler assassination attempt squarely on the USSS leadership, including Rowe, who moved into the acting Secret Service director role after Congress pressured former Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign. The Texas Republican urged Curran to read the House Task Forces’ report “thoroughly and strongly consider the recommendations therein.”
“We cannot stress enough the need for dramatic change in culture at the USSS,” they wrote. “The events of July 13 in particular underscore why the world’s premier protective agency, the USSS, can never succumb to complacency.”
“There is good evidence that, as the agency’s next director, you will effect such change, and we are reassured by President Trump’s over confidence in you as his choice to lead,” they added. “Our republic is counting on you to ensure [the] USSS lives up to its zero-fail mission.”
Tensions flared between Fallon and Rowe during a December House Task Force hearing that pressed Rowe about the findings of the group’s investigation. Fallon lambasted Rowe for taking nine days to visit the Butler site despite being the deputy director at the time. He then accused him of trying to push Biden’s protective agents to the side so he could stand in a position of prominence at a New York City event celebrating the 23rd anniversary of 9/11.
“I actually responded to Ground Zero. I was there going through the ashes of the World Trade Center,” Rowe retorted. “I was there, congressman – I was there to show respect for a Secret Service member that died on 9/11. Do not invoke 9/11 for political purposes.”
The exchange became even more explosive, with both men trying to interrupt each other after Fallon said Rowe was trying to change the subject because the criticism was true.
“You know why you were there, because you wanted to be visible, because you are auditioning for this job that you’re not going to get,” he further yelled during their confrontation, accusing Rowe of endangering lives.
Even before receiving the letter, Curran was wasting little time in starting to clean house at the Secret Service. On his first day on the job, as many as 10 senior leadership officials, including Rowe, were warned that they would either be fired, moved, or pressed into retirement, according to three Secret Service sources.
Curran has been inundated with information on which top officials on the 8th floor of headquarters to oust or replace. Agents are circulating removal wish lists, as well as names of those agents Curran or other members of his new leadership team already informed that their services are no longer needed.
Agents are expressing an urgent need to remove Chief Operating Officer Cynthia Sjoberg Radway from her leadership post. Radway was incredibly close to Cheatle, the pair having become good friends during a previous Radway stint working for the agency. When Cheatle became director, she brought Radway back to work more directly for her in the COO role and gave her a bonus to do so, according to multiple sources. The fear is that Radway, if allowed to stay, will continue to serve as a pipeline of information back to Cheatle. She also has crossed many agents Curran respects.
“She will be a major roadblock to positive progress,” if allowed to stay, one source in the Secret Service community told RealClearPolitics.
One of the biggest points of contention about who should stay and go is being waged over an alleged decision by former USSS leadership, under Cheatle’s and Rowe’s direction, not to inform Curran of the security threats against Trump before the Butler rally.
In addition to Cheatle and Rowe, David Torres, assistant director of Strategic Intelligence and Information, was also involved in keeping the Trump campaign detail in the dark about a specific Iranian attempt against Trump’s life. The Pittsburgh Field Office, which partnered with the Trump campaign detail for planning and executing security for the Butler rally, also was never informed before the July 13 assassination attempt. If the two Secret Service contingents had been informed, the agents charged with providing security may have upped their game to come up with a more robust security plan and far better execution, these sources contend.
Rowe officially passed the torch to Curran in a “good-bye” letter to all Secret Service personal sent late Thursday night and obtained by RealClearPolitics. In it, he praised Curran’s selection for the role, while omitting any reference to the two assassination attempts against Trump’s life while he was serving in top leadership agency roles. Rowe only became acting director after Kimberly Cheatle resigned under pressure from Congress in the wake of the Butler assassination-attempt debacle.
Rowe strangely claimed he is “excited” to announce that Curran will be the next director, the 28th in the agency’s history. (Trump previously announced that decision on Truth Social.)
“Throughout his career, Director Curran has led and played critical roles in both protective operations and the investigative mission,” Rowe wrote. “He has consistently demonstrated outstanding leadership, integrity, and courage.”
“His vision, dedication, and ability to drive results have earned him respect inside the agency and from law enforcement partners,” he continued. “I am confident that under his leadership the Secret Service will continue to grow, innovate, and remain steadfast in our unwavering commitment to succeed in our missions.” Rowe’s conclusion that he’s “proud of all that we have accomplished together” without any mention of the monumental failures in Butler and during the second assassination attempt on Trump’s life at a Florida golf course spurred instant ridicule among rank-and-file agents.
But it was the way he signed the letter that gave fellow agents and USSS officers the most pause. Rowe listed his title as deputy director, the post he held before former Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas elevated him to the acting director role following Cheatle’s resignation.
If Rowe is moving to the deputy director role with Curran in the top post, agents tell RCP they believe nothing will change, and the USSS will continue to experience protection failures, retention problems, and low morale. “When are we going to seriously fix the problems instead of putting lipstick on a pig?” one source questioned.
Yet, Rowe may simply be moving back to the deputy director job temporarily before Curran has a chance to name his own No. 2 and chief of staff. The names circulating among the Secret Service for those top leadership roles include Matthew Piant, who served as Curran’s No. 2 on the Trump campaign detail, and Tyler McQuiston, a former agent who previously served in several senior protective operations roles.
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