Secret Service under scrutiny

The Secret Service's performance reopened debate over presidential security after the new assassination attempt against Donald Trump. On one hand, despite the president himself praising the team's performance in protecting him and Melania Trump, questions remain about how Cole Tomas Allen was able to get so close to the room where authorities were located. On the other hand, GOP representatives highlighted the professionalism and courage of the agents despite the agency being without funds as a result of the Democratic shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.

According to aides, the dinner guests got in without too much trouble, and without having their identities checked inside the Hilton hotel, despite the heavy presence of Secret Service members in the complex.

Security "wasn't particularly heavy"

For example, the BBC's Washington correspondent, Gary O'Donoghue, noted that the security measures in the building "wasn't particularly heavy. The man on the door outside only took a cursory look at my ticket from what must have been six feet away."

Although the adjoining streets were closed hours earlier, it is the security inside the venue that received much of the criticism. The first criticism is that it is a difficult place to defend, something Trump himself pointed to by calling for the White House ballroom to be unlocked by the Justice Department: "It's actually a bigger room and much more secure. It's drone-protected. It has bulletproof glass. We need the ballroom."

Also adding to the criticism was Kim Darroch, the former U.K. ambassador to Washington, who has attended correspondents' dinners before. Speaking to the BBC, he said: "If you were there as a hotel guest and you had the evil intention of sneaking into this dinner, you'd only have to get through a single security check... and you'd already be in the ballroom."

That is precisely what Cole Tomas Allen did. Staying at the hotel, he was able to move while heavily armed and even race past at least one checkpoint, based on images shared by Trump on Truth Social, before Secret Service agents opened fire and managed to subdue him after a shootout.

Security experts vouch for Secret Service's work

However, security experts endorsed the work of the agents deployed to ensure the safety of the president, the Cabinet and those attending the event. In fact, they stressed that the shooter never gained access to the ballroom, indicating that the security measures did their job.

For example, former Secret Service agent Jeffrey James, who protected Trump himself during his first term, stressed that Cole Allen was stopped at an "outer perimeter checkpoint" and, in fact, never even made it to the floor where Trump was. He further applauded the communication between agents.

Protecting Trump... in spite of Trump

James also explained that the agents who draped their bodies over Trump and Melania did not take too long to evacuate, but had used "a tactical pause" to make sure they were not rushed into an ambush on the way out. Added to this was the attitude of the president himself, by his own admission on "60 Minutes," which made the job of security members difficult:

"Well, what happened is that...it was partly my fault. I wanted to see what was going on, and I didn't make it easy for him. I wanted to see what was cooking. And by then we started to realize that maybe this was a serious problem, a different problem, a bad one. And different from the normal ballroom noise, which you hear all the time. And... I was surrounded by great people. And I probably slowed them down a little bit. I said, "Wait a minute, wait a minute. Let me see. Wait a minute."

I was standing... sort of. I was standing and then I turned around in the opposite direction and started walking out rather poised, a little bit hunched over because they...you know, I didn't want to look too haughty. And...but I was walking out. I was about halfway out when they said, 'Please get down on the ground. Please get on the ground.' So I got down on the floor. And so did the first lady."

"A fantastic job"

The president himself wanted to highlight the great work of the agents and their "courage" in dealing with a possible attack. "What a night in Washington DC. The Secret Service and law enforcement did a fantastic job."

Former FBI special agent Jeff Kroeger also praised the performance of those charged with ensuring presidential security: "This is exactly what the Secret Service is trained to do." Upon hearing the shots, "they converged on the president," creating a "human barrier," he said.

Still, some experts said, the usual tightening expected stricter measures for Trump events from now on, such as a wider perimeter or fewer Cabinet members attending joint events.