A Secret Service agent has been placed on administrative leave after allegedly sexually assaulting a female staffer from Vice President Kamala Harris' team in Wisconsin. The alleged incident occurred during a campaign visit in September, and the agent was reportedly inebriated at the time.
The Daily Caller reported that the assault is the latest in a series of high-profile incidents that have put the Secret Service under the spotlight for misconduct and failures.
The incident reportedly took place while an advance team from the Harris campaign was in Green Bay, Wisconsin, ahead of a rally that the vice president ultimately did not attend.
According to a report from Real Clear Politics (RCP), the agent "forced himself" on the female staffer in her hotel room, with witnesses present.
Prior to the alleged assault, the agent and several staffers were drinking together at a hotel. At some point during the evening, the agent became so intoxicated that he was kicked out of his own hotel room by his co-workers.
According to one Secret Service source, the agent passed out in the hallway, and photos of him were taken by others at the scene.
After the group returned to the staffer’s hotel room, the situation escalated. The Secret Service agent allegedly groped the staffer, leading to immediate concerns among other staffers present.
Details of how the situation was handled by the team remain unclear, but the Secret Service was quick to initiate an internal investigation.
Following the incident, the Secret Service's Inspections Division summoned the agent to headquarters for a meeting with investigators. A spokesman for the Secret Service confirmed that the Office of Professional Responsibility had launched an investigation into the matter, stressing that the agency holds its employees to "the highest standards."
The agent has since been placed on administrative leave, and the outcome of the investigation remains pending. Senior officials from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) were promptly informed about the incident by the Secret Service. However, the Harris campaign has not released any additional information regarding the situation.
This incident marks yet another in a troubling pattern of recent blunders by the Secret Service. Earlier in the year, the agency faced widespread criticism following an attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on July 13.
The failure of the Secret Service to prevent the attempt was highlighted in a report from the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General.
Other high-profile errors include the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in August, as well as a bizarre incident in which an agent abandoned her post to breastfeed while on Trump’s protective detail. In another embarrassing misstep, the agency was forced to apologize after mistakenly honoring terrorists during a 9/11 commemoration.
In response to the growing scrutiny, the Department of Homeland Security recently released a report detailing the failures of the Secret Service during the July 13 incident involving Trump. In an effort to address these concerns, House Speaker Mike Johnson proposed a continuing resolution that would allocate an additional $231 million in funding for the agency.
The additional funding is intended to strengthen the agency’s operations and prevent further incidents of misconduct or security failures. However, critics argue that increased funding alone may not resolve the underlying issues within the Secret Service, which have persisted for several years.
The Harris campaign has chosen not to provide any further details about the alleged assault or the investigation, citing the ongoing nature of the probe.
A brief statement confirmed that senior OVP officials were informed by the Secret Service, but no further comment was given.
The lack of transparency has raised questions, particularly given the serious nature of the allegations. However, the investigation by the Secret Service Office of Professional Responsibility is still in its early stages, and it is unclear when additional information will be made public.
The alleged sexual assault involving a Secret Service agent and a staffer from Kamala Harris' team in Wisconsin adds to a growing list of incidents that have placed the agency under intense scrutiny. The agent, who was reportedly inebriated during the incident, has been placed on administrative leave, and an investigation is ongoing.
In recent months, the Secret Service has been criticized for a series of security lapses and misconduct, including the resignation of its director and a failed assassination attempt on former President Trump. The future of the agency remains uncertain as investigations continue and reforms are debated.
