U.S. officials say former President Donald Trump had more Secret Service protection than usual ahead of Saturday's assassination attempt because of a prior threat coming from Iran.
Scripps News has confirmed that U.S. security officials were aware of an Iranian assassination plot against the former president, and that it led to an increase in his security prior to the deadly attack at a Trump campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania.
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Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a national security official told Scripps News that upon learning of the increased threat, the White House National Security Council directly contacted the Secret Service — at a senior level — to inform them of the recent developments. The Secret Service then shared the information with the Trump campaign and increased protective measures surrounding former President Trump.
It's understood that all of these events took place in advance of Saturday's assassination attempt, but NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement that, as of now, law enforcement is not tracking a connection between the shooter in the Trump assassination attempt and the Iranian plot.
Watson said the NSC has been tracking Iranian threats against Trump and former Trump administration officials for years, and these threats have risen from Iran's desire to seek revenge for the U.S. killing of a top Iranian military commander.
"We consider this a national and Homeland Security matter of the highest priority," Watson added.
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The Secret Service has not yet confirmed or denied these developments. However, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said in a statement Monday that the agency had provided the former president "additional security enhancements in June." At the time, she did not elaborate further.
Scripps News has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment but had not heard back at the time of this publication.
