The deputy director of the U.S. Secret Service, Ronald Rowe Jr., has been appointed as the acting director of the embattled agency after Kimberly Cheatle announced her resignation.
Rowe is set to testify Tuesday, just over a week after Cheatle’s testimony that ultimately led her to step down.
Rowe has assumed the helm of the Secret Service as elected officials and the public grow increasingly wary of the agency following the assassination attempt on former President Trump.
Rowe, as acting director, has leaped into the forefront of the House Oversight Committee’s investigation of the agency’s failures that nearly allowed 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks to kill Trump during a Pennsylvania rally on Saturday, July 13.
Cheatle announced her resignation amid bipartisan calls for her to step down following a contentious hearing with the House Oversight Committee on July 22.
“I take full responsibility for the security lapse. In light of recent events, it is with a heavy heart that I have made the difficult decision to step down as your director,” she said in her resignation letter.
Rowe is now responsible for leading the more than 7,800 special agents, uniformed division officers and technical law enforcement officers, as well as administrative and technical staff.
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Rowe, a 24-year veteran of the Secret Service, has served in a multitude of leadership positions within the agency.
Before his Secret Service tenure, Rowe was a member of the West Palm Beach Police Department in Florida.
West Palm Beach Assistant Police Chief Tony Spatara told CBS 12 that Rowe is “very intelligent” and “well-rounded.”
“Knowing him personally, I am very proud he achieved his goal and then some in the Secret Service,” Spatara said. “Ron is a very intelligent person who is well-rounded, has a multitude of experience.”
Spatara told the local outlet that Rowe is up for the challenge of leading the agency, saying that they made the “correct decision in selecting him.”
“I think he is the exact person. I think they made the correct decision in selecting him,” he said. “I don’t know of a person in this country that’s more up to the task of taking on the challenge of what’s upcoming.”
In a statement, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas thanked Rowe for stepping in during this “incredibly challenging moment” in the agency’s history.
“I appreciate his willingness to lead the Secret Service at this incredibly challenging moment, as the agency works to get to the bottom of exactly what happened on July 13 and cooperate with ongoing investigations and Congressional oversight,” Mayorkas said.
“The Secret Service is the greatest protective service in the world, with one of the most difficult and solemn missions in government,” he said. “I have the utmost confidence in Deputy Director Rowe and the men and women of the Secret Service, who put their lives on the line every day and deserve our full support.”
President Biden is now tasked with picking the next Secret Service leader, announcing that he plans to make his pick “soon.”
“The independent review to get to the bottom of what happened on July 13 continues, and I look forward to assessing its conclusions. We all know what happened that day can never happen again,” Biden wrote. “As we move forward, I wish Kim all the best, and I will plan to appoint a new Director soon.”
