Trump gets added Secret Service protection, bulletproof glass for campaign events

WASHINGTON (TND) — With about two and a half months until Election Day, security officials are rushing to ramp up candidate safety.

Former President Donald Trump will now be provided bulletproof glass at his rallies, which have been indoors since the attempted assassination in Butler, Pennsylvania about a month ago.

Bulletproof glass is already made available for sitting presidents and vice presidents.

According to the New York Times, the Secret Service has been pulling agents from President Joe Biden's detail and temporarily reassigning them to protect Trump. It's an unusual move, but, citing an unnamed Secret Service official, the Times reports, "the increased threat of violence against Mr. Trump, combined with Mr. Biden's recent reduced travel schedule, made the step both necessary and feasible."

These added layers of security for Trump come as the Secret Service faces massive scrutiny for how it prepared—or didn't—for that now-notorious Pennsylvania rally. Earlier this month, Secret Service Acting Director Ronald L. Rowe, Jr. called it "a mission failure."

On Thursday, Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., who is on the House task force investigating the assassination attempt, released a preliminary report that said after Thomas Matthew Crooks fired eight shots, a member of a local SWAT team fired a shot that "hit Crooks' rifle stock."

Higgins wrote, “He stopped Crooks and importantly, I believe the shot damaged the buffer tube on Crooks’ AR. I won’t be certain of this until I can examine Crooks’ rifle, but I’m 99% sure.”

As investigations continue, Secret Service personnel have their hands full in the coming weeks leading up to the election. Officials are gearing up for the beginning of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday. Then, there are expected to be two presidential debates and a vice presidential debate.