US had intel on Iran plot to kill Trump, stepped up security, unrelated to Sat. shooting
White House stresses threat not connected to Pennsylvania assassination attempt; officials were reportedly concerned by sharp rise in mentions of ex-president by Iran’s state media
The United States received intelligence from a human source in recent weeks regarding an Iranian plan to assassinate former president Donald Trump, CNN reported on Tuesday, and the Secret Service was instructed to step up security around him due to the threat.
There was no indication that Thomas Matthew Crooks, who tried to assassinate Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, was connected to the plot, the report said.
Two US officials told the Associated Press that the US Secret Service and the Trump campaign were made aware of the Iranian threat, prompting a surge in resources and assets, which ultimately did not prevent Saturday’s attack.
National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said there have been no ties identified between the gunman at the rally “and any accomplice or co-conspirator, foreign or domestic.”
Trump’s campaign has been warned several times that it would be better off holding rallies indoors, as there are greater risks posed by hosting them out in the open, CNN stated, but until recently, these had been general warnings.
Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi told CNN that the agency recently “added protective resources and capabilities to the former president’s security detail.”
The agency has come under scrutiny in recent days after the gunman at Saturday’s rally gained access to a roof unimpeded and fired directly at Trump, grazing his ear, killing a rallygoer and critically wounding two other attendees.
While law enforcement officials had long been concerned about the possibility of Iranian plans to harm the former president, recent intelligence indicated an increased threat, CNN reported, citing sources with knowledge on the matter.
According to the sources, there had been a significant uptick in mentions of Trump across Iranian state media and online accounts, which raised concerns among US officials.
The threat marks the latest development in what American officials have described as ongoing efforts by Iran to assassinate Trump administration members behind a 2020 US airstrike that killed the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani.
“These threats arise from Iran’s desire to seek revenge for the killing of Qassem Soleimani. We consider this a national and homeland security matter of the highest priority,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said Tuesday.
Watson stressed there have been no ties identified between the gunman at the rally “and any accomplice or co-conspirator, foreign or domestic.”
Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations denied the report that it had planned to target Trump, calling it “unsubstantiated and malicious,” but said that he was “a criminal who must be prosecuted and punished in a court of law,” for the killing of Soleimani.
The statement added that Iran had chosen to pursue “the legal path to bring him to justice.”
Other former high-level Trump administration officials also receive protection following Soleimani’s assassination. Since taking office, the Biden administration has repeatedly extended 24/7 protection to former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and his top Iran aide, Brian Hook, due to credible threats on their lives from Iran.
The last time the protection was extended by the State Department was on June 21, according to congressional notifications seen by the AP. As of March 2022, the State Department was paying more than $2 million per month to provide 24-hour security to Pompeo and Hook, though the agency has stopped reporting the cost figures to Congress.
US defense officials who continue to receive protection include then-defense secretary Mark Esper, retired Army Gen. Mark Milley, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and retired Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, who headed US Central Command at the time and was in charge of the operation.
