This extract is from the crazed Leftist would-be Trump assassin Cole Tomas Allen's manifesto:
"PS: Ok now that all the sappy stuff is done, what the hell is the Secret Service doing? Sorry, gonna rant a bit here and drop the formal tone.
Like, I expected security cameras at every bend, bugged hotel rooms, armed agents every 10 feet, metal detectors out the wazoo.
What I got (who knows, maybe they're pranking me!) is nothing.
No damn security.
Not in transport.
Not in the hotel.
Not in the event.
Like, the one thing that I immediately noticed walking into the hotel is the sense of arrogance.
I walk in with multiple weapons and not a single person there considers the possibility that I could be a threat.
The security at the event is all outside, focused on protestors and current arrivals, because apparently no one thought about what happens if someone checks in the day before.
Like, this level of incompetence is insane, and I very sincerely hope it's corrected by the time this country gets actually competent leadership again.
Like, if I was an Iranian agent, instead of an American citizen, I could have brought a damn Ma Deuce in here and no one would have noticed ****.
Actually insane."
This rant from Cole Tomas Allen's manifesto is raw, unfiltered, and damning precisely because the guy had a point on the mechanics — even if his motives were deranged "Friendly Federal Assassin" fever dreams against the Trump administration. He checked into the Washington Hilton the day before, walked in armed (shotgun, handgun, knives), breezed past what should have been ironclad layers, and got close enough to put a round into a Secret Service agent's vest before getting tackled. The response was fast and effective once shots cracked. The setup? Embarrassingly porous.
The Failures Are Real — And Familiar
Hotel guest loophole: Registered guests could move freely with minimal re-screening. Cole exploited the "I'm already inside" vector the day prior. Outer perimeters focused on protestors and arrivals; inside felt like business-as-usual arrogance. No magnetometers at every choke point, inconsistent ID/ticket checks, no deep hotel room sweeps or continuous armed overwatch in the building.
Complacency at a high-profile soft target: The Hilton isn't the White House. Black-tie event + media glitter + politicians schmoozing = "secure enough" mindset. Attendees and insiders described lax screening, ticket-based entry without rigorous verification. Cole nailed it: "a sense of arrogance... not a single person there considers the possibility."
Pattern recognition: This is the third notable Trump-era close call (Butler 2024 roof guy, Florida golf course, now WHCD). Each time, advance work, venue vulnerabilities, and low-tech threats exposed gaps. Former agents and Congress (McCaul, Oversight) are calling it negligent given the principals present (Trump, Vance, Cabinet).
The agent hit in the vest survived, but wounded, because of gear and quick action. Trump/Vance evacuated fast. Shooter subdued in seconds. That part worked. The "how did he get there with a long gun?" part did not.
Incompetence, Not (Probably) Deliberate
Some scream "inside job" or stand-down. Reality check: if the SS (or elements inside) wanted Trump gone, they've had far cleaner opportunities and would not keep botching the appearance of security this publicly. These repeated lapses scream bureaucratic decay more than conspiracy:
Chronic under-resourcing + mission creep (protecting too many people with stretched detail).
Venue reliance: Hotels and event planners share responsibility; SS can't turn every ballroom into a fortress without cooperation.
Post-2024 reforms apparently incomplete. Low-tech lone actors (no training, basic weapons) keep slipping through while fancy drones get the budget.
Cultural drift: The same elite ecosystem that shrugs at shoplifting, wine theft, and demographic suicide, treats presidential protection as performative until it isn't.
Cole's manifesto reads like a post-literate Leftist radical's mashup — rage at the administration, betrayal vibes, nausea at his own act. He apologised to non-targets and family while planning to "go through" others. Classic lone wolf with a manifesto, enabled by the exact gaps he observed.
We have:
1.Wine-snatching elites amid chaos — norms optional.
2.Pets over progeny — future optional.
3.Guards told not to guard — order optional.
4.Presidential protection with holes big enough for a shotgun — continuity of government... optional?
The SS will get investigated — hearings, reforms, new protocols for hotels and mixed events. They usually do after each failure. Competence is recoverable. But only if the arrogance Cole spotted gets replaced with paranoia done right: assume the threat is already inside, already checked in, already armed with grievances and guns.