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As Congressional members on both sides of the aisle\u00a0grilled U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle<\/a>\u00a0Monday on how a gunman was able to fire shots at former President Donald Trump in an assassination attempt, several Republican lawmakers seized on gender and the agency\u2019s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts as among the reasons for the security failure.<\/p>\n \u201cMa\u2019am, you are a DEI horror story,\u201d Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee told Cheatle<\/a> during the hours-long hearing in front of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.<\/p>\n Wisconsin Rep. Glenn Grothman asked the director if she was \u201cnot hiring men because of your desire to hit certain targets.\u201d<\/p>\n And Texas Rep. Michael Cloud questioned Cheatle\u2019s strategic plan for the Secret Service, in which she has championed diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, including her support for the 30\u00d730 Initiative, which seeks\u00a0to increase the representation of women recruits to 30% by 2030<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes every Secret Service agent meet the same qualifications, or do you have different standards for different people?\u201d Cloud asked.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, sir. Everyone who moves through the application process has to meet the same standards to become a special agent,\u201d Cheatle answered.<\/p>\n Conservative backlash against DEI has been\u00a0on the rise since last June<\/a>, when the Supreme Court ruled to end affirmative action in college admissions.\u00a0Several companies have come under attack<\/a>\u00a0because of their DEI policies, among them\u00a0John Deere<\/a>,\u00a0Tractor Supply<\/a>,\u00a0Target<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Bud Light<\/a>.<\/p>\n The latest DEI attack materialized in full view Monday against the Secret Service and Cheatle, but the issue had been brewing ever since the July 13 assassination attempt at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania, where several female agents were among those protecting the former president and several conservatives questioned their fitness to serve.<\/p>\n \u201cThere should not be any women in the Secret Service. These are supposed to be the very best, and none of the very best at this job are women,\u201d conservative political commentator Matt Walsh posted on X<\/a> the morning after the assassination attempt. \u201cIf there\u2019s a woman doing a job like this, it 100 percent means that a more qualified male was passed over.\u201d<\/p>\n Meghan McCain, daughter of the late senator and U.S. presidential candidate John McCain, reposted Walsh\u2019s statement, adding: \u201cThe notion that men and women are the same is just absurd. You need to be taller than the candidate to protect them with your body. Why do they have these short women (one who can\u2019t holster a gun apparently) guarding Trump? This is embarrassing and dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n Photos of the immediate aftermath of the shooting show a female agent\u00a0shielding Trump with her body<\/a>.<\/p>\n David Glasgow, executive director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at New York University School of Law, said the fresh DEI criticism is no surprise.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s now a pretty consistent pattern whenever anything goes wrong that it gets blamed on DEI,\u201d he said. \u201cAfter the\u00a0Baltimore Bridge collapse<\/a>, there were people blaming DEI,\u201d and the same happened after\u00a0Boeing<\/a>\u00a0was dealing with aircraft safety issues.<\/p>\n Massachusetts Democrat Ayanna Pressley said it is \u201cdisgraceful\u201d that Republicans are \u201ctrotting out sexist tropes\u201d blaming women for the security failures at Trump\u2019s rally. She said she believed her Republican counterparts were exploiting the shooting to \u201ccontinue to attack progress towards racial justice and gender equity in America.\u201d She also reserved criticism for Cheatle for not adequately addressing questions during Monday\u2019s hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day, Director Cheatle, that you fail to give us answers, they are given more oxygen to make their baseless claims that women and people of color are responsible for tragic events. And that is dangerous too,\u201d Pressley said.<\/p>\n For her part, Cheatle said \u201cthe incident on the 13th has nothing to do with DEI. The incident on the 13th has to do with a gap in either planning or communication.\u201d<\/p>\n Under Cheatle, the Secret Service has continued its pledge to the 30\u00d730 Initiative, which aims to improve the representation and experiences of women in law enforcement. Currently, women make up only 12% of sworn officers and 3% of police leadership in the U.S., according to organization\u2019s website. Cheatle herself is only the second woman to head up the Secret Service.<\/p>\n Dozens more police departments and law enforcement agencies have also taken up the 30\u00d730 Initiative, including in red states like Iowa, North Dakota, Arkansas, Kansas, and Florida. And so far, none of those departments has pulled back on the efforts.<\/p>\n Catrina Bonus, president of Women in Federal Law Enforcement, called the attacks on DEI \u201cdisheartening.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s rhetoric questioning our presence in law enforcement is not just outdated; it is rooted in ignorance,\u201d she said in a statement. \u201cIt dishonors the trailblazers who faced unimaginable challenges to make this profession more inclusive and equitable \u2014 as well as to the next generation, to show them that law enforcement is filled with open doors and opportunities and through hard work and determination, they can achieve anything they put their minds to.\u201d<\/p>\n Maureen McGough, co-founder of the 30\u00d730 Initiative, pushed back hard on the gender critique.<\/p>\n \u201cWe think about the women who are putting their lives on the line every day to do this job in law enforcement, who were called into service, who make incredible sacrifices. And to have people who have never set foot in the arena just indict them just because of their gender, it\u2019s sad, you know, it\u2019s heartbreaking,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut it also is an opportunity for us to double down on our efforts,\u201d McGough added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n