Austin News

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has introduced the Counter Secretary Negligence In Protecting Election Runners (SNIPER) Act. This legislation mandates that the Secretary of Homeland Security determine a presidential candidate’s eligibility for new or enhanced United States Secret Service (USSS) protection in a timely, impartial, and transparent manner. The House version of this bill was introduced by Representative August Pfluger (R-Texas-11).

Senator Cruz stated, “In the last two months, there have been two assassination attempts on President Trump’s life. Officials have briefed President Trump's campaign about Iranian assassination plots. Alejandro Mayorkas’s repeated failures to adequately enhance security for President Trump are inexcusable. Mayorkas also failed to provide Secret Service protection for Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for months, despite credible threats on Kennedy's life. The Biden-Harris administration has politicized everything, from the DOJ to the Secret Service. I am proud to be working with Rep. Pfluger to hold the Biden-Harris administration accountable for these failures. All presidential candidates should receive fair and apolitical treatment by the Department of Homeland Security.”

Representative Pfluger added, “In July, our country was mere millimeters away from a presidential assassination, and at least two attempts on President Trump’s life have been narrowly thwarted in the last three months. The Department of Homeland Security must ensure that all presidential candidates are given fair, apolitical, timely, and transparent consideration of USSS protection. We must provide adequate security for all presidential candidates—no matter their party affiliation."

The full text of the bill is available.

The Counter SNIPER Act requires that when the Secretary of Homeland Security decides that a presidential candidate is not eligible for a requested protective detail or an increase in protective resources, a written notice must be provided to both the candidate and an advisory committee within 14 days of the request. This notice must specify which criteria were not met by the candidate.

Upon receiving a denial notice from the Secretary, a presidential candidate can submit a written request for reconsideration along with additional facts and evidence supporting their request. The Secretary is then required to review this information and make a final written decision within another 14 days.

Furthermore, this act introduces additional accountability measures by making nominees for Director of the Secret Service subject to Senate confirmation.

###