Secret Service allegedly delayed Trump's Nashville speech following security lapse
Former President Trump's speech in Nashville, Tennessee, over the weekend was briefly delayed by the Secret Service over another security concern, just two weeks after he survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania, according to reports.
Trump was prepared to take the stage on Saturday afternoon inside the Music City Center for the 2024 Bitcoin conference when Secret Service agents had him wait as two credentialed and screened attendees were removed from the venue for not following proper entry protocols, according to the New York Post and Fox 17.
The former president was told by his Secret Service detail to wait until the two individuals were located before he could take the stage to give his keynote address.
A Secret Service spokesperson told both outlets that there was never a threat to Trump.
"It was determined that there was no protective interest with these individuals and there was never a threat to the former president," the spokesperson said.
Both individuals were questioned by law enforcement after they were found and removed from the event, the New York Post reported. Neither person was charged in connection with the incident.
The two people were stopped at an initial checkpoint before bypassing the second screening, according to the outlet.
It remains unclear how the individuals made it past the screening.
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This comes after Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, when gunman Thomas Mathew Crooks, 20, opened fire. One spectator was killed while other attendees were wounded. Trump suffered injuries to his ear in the incident.
The shooting in Pennsylvania led to bipartisan criticism of the Secret Service over the security lapse, as congressional lawmakers look to investigate how Crooks managed to make it onto the roof of a building outside the perimeter at the rally and have a line of sight of the former president to take a shot with his firearm.
Now-former Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle has since resigned over the security lapses.