WATCH: Sen. Lee questions acting Secret Service director on Trump rally shooting probe

Why was President Trump allowed to take the stage at 6:02 p.m. exactly 17 minutes after multiple suspicious person reports were provided, uh, complete with photos and information suggesting that the assailant had a rangefinder, something that ordinary people don't use, uh, in this kind of circumstance. Senator, again, it was suspicion, not weapon, or there was never communication of that there was an individual with a gun or threat or other bad intentions. How many suspicious person reports did you receive that day? Uh, I'll get back to you on the exact number, but there were other individuals that came to the attention of law enforcement that day. Would President Biden ever be allowed on stage under similar circumstances with an unresolved set of multiple suspicious person reports provided, including indicating that there was a range finder involved. Senator, I can tell you that a suspicious person on the outer perimeter with local law enforcement attempting to locate is would happen, um, but I would need more information as far as whether or not we would allow the president to go on or off again for for us, it comes down to weapon, uh, uh, a potential threat is the individual carrying an IED? Is there a weapon? Is there some other factor that now ramps up our attention to let's let's let's hold off on this if there were 8 shell casings found next to the assailant's body. But he was neutralized after the first shot. Where do those other shots come from? Where do the other shots go? As far as the assailants shooting, yes, so did the assailant get out 8 shots or were the shell casings left from the day before? What, where did they come from? The shooter, Senator we believe fired 8 rounds. We had the shooting reconstruction team go out there for a period of days and collect all that. So we have bullet holes, bullet fragmentation, all taken back and we're still putting together the um trajectory and ballistic analysis, although we do have fragments of the boards and boards had been collected in the distance from the shooter's weapon. Gotcha, gotcha. It's my understanding. There was a sniper team assigned to a window with complete overlook, complete view of the roof, the same rooftop, uh, sloped rooftop where the shots were fired. It's also my understanding, according to some whistleblower accounts that that post was abandoned. What can you tell me about that? Why was it abandoned? So I saw that from um The colonel's testimony, sir, and it's something that I've asked in our mission assurance is getting to the bottom of and uh there were 22 men counter sniper teams from the locals that were in that AGR building. And so at some point they just left. That I, I, I cannot, I don't have an answer for you on that Senator, but it seems to me that if even one of them left there should have been remaining some additional eyes left in that building. That seems like something that maybe should be one of the very first questions you address. I'm actually surprised that you don't know that already, and I'd ask that you submit to us in writing what you learn as soon as you learn it. Will you commit to that? Yes, sir. What can you tell me about, let me, let me just state this this way. Multiple requests were made. By Trump's protective detail and by Trump's campaign team to the Secret Service for additional resources. Told that those were denied. And as I recall, the Secret Service spokesperson Initially denied that such requests were made and denied. Why not tell the truth from the outset? What were they trying to do there? So Senator, I don't think there was any intention to miss to mislead it's like a pretty material fact, isn't it? I, I saw that report. Senator. Will you commit to me that you will submit to us in writing what requests were made by whom. Uh, and to whom and when they were denied. I will, sir. OK. Um, Look, At the end of the day, we, we're looking at a situation in which um At a minimum People knew that this guy had a gun. At least 2 minutes before the shooting happened. I want to know what you can tell me about what happened during that final 2 minute period. Where a whole bunch of people in the crowd saw and were shouting, he's got a gun. During that 2 minute period, perhaps at the beginning of it, the local police started to climb the rooftop and there was at least 30 seconds after which local police were able to personally observe the shooter with a gun had the gun pointed at him. What happened during that time period and why on earth was President Trump not removed from the stage at that moment. So again, Senator, I The reason why Senator Trump, President Trump, was not removed was again we did not have anything more than locals working an issue at the 3 o'clock. Wasn't determined as to whether or not it was the same individual or not, and there was no report of the same individual as what? The same suspicious individual we've left the category of suspicious individual at that point. You've got a guy with a gun. On a rooftop 136 yards away from the stage, you know that he's got a gun at that point. What happened during that time period that did not result in President Trump, his protective detail being notified of that and him immediately being removed from the situation. So what I will Say that I'll, I'll turn it over to Deputy Director of B. No information regarding a weapon on the roof was ever passed to our personnel. How is that even possible? Do you want to comment to that, Senator, uh again, I believe that information um and this is probably something my colleague can can expound on information that was in law enforcement, local law enforcement channels, but did not cross over and make it to Secret Service awareness. Senator, just to clarify the timeline, so, um, the individual was first seen by law enforcement on the roof at about 6:08. Uh, we're still working to perfect the timeline based on the radio coms and all that. It wasn't until um at 66 1103 seconds the officer saw him and called out his arm. That was the first sighting where he had the rifle on the roof and then he was relayed to the Secret Service command center at that. My understanding is no Secret Service, it was not relayed to. them. It's a narrower time frame though it's probably about maybe up to half a minute between the time he's seen with the rifle and when the shots are fired. But there's still time. At that point, if there were an open channel of communication in which they were able to tell him he's got a gun. Take him out. You could still Take President Trump off the stage. You could have him duck. You could have the shooter neutralized. Do you, do you not have a channel of communication by which they can say gun, take him out. So again, Senator, That information stayed and stayed and local. Channels and did not make it over to Secret consider that relevant. You're saying that the state that you're saying that the local police didn't consider that relevant enough to pass along to the Secret Service? Sir, I think that they were in the midst of dealing with a very critical situation and they Articulated that over the radio, as I understand it. However, it was never relayed over to us. Thank you, Senator Lee. Senator Hawley.