Johnson, Jeffries announce task force to investigate Trump assassination attempt

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) announced a bipartisan task force Tuesday to investigate the attempted assassination of former President Trump earlier this month.

“The security failures that allowed an assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life are shocking. In response to bipartisan demands for answers, we are announcing a House Task Force made up of seven Republicans and six Democrats to thoroughly investigate the matter,” Johnson and Jeffries said in a joint statement. “The task force will be empowered with subpoena authority and will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again.”

The task force is set to have 13 members comprised of six Democrats and seven Republicans, according to the resolution to create the task force. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), who was in the front row at Trump’s rally during the attack, is the lead sponsor of the resolution. 

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) told The Hill that the resolution would likely get a vote Wednesday evening. It is set to be considered under suspension of the rules, requiring broad bipartisan support with two-thirds support of the chamber for adoption.

Emmer expected it would easily get that support, saying it was his understanding that Johnson and Jeffries had talked through all of the details of the task force.

The goal of the task force, which would have subpoena authority, is to assess the security failures that led to the attack and make recommendations on any agency changes, as well as legislation to implement them.

Johnson had promised the task force in the days after the shooting last week.

The shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pa., left the former president injured, one rally attendee dead and two others severely injured. The 20-year-old shooting suspect was killed by authorities.