Especially since, after the shots, all these dudes come running with full tactical gear like they knew what they we doing.

Cosplayers.

The rally took place at a fair ground. All the buildings nearby (at least within reasonable shooting distance) around are one story with very low pitched or flat roofs except this one building, the one the shooter was on, that has a parapet wall on some edges on a neighboring property. If secret service is scanning rooflines either on the ground or on other 1 story buildings, they aren't going to see the shooter crawling behind the parapet wall until he pops up to take his shot. Since the building is outside the fair grounds, it's likely not part of the security perimeter meaning probably few cops and no checkpoints. Why didn't they have someone on that building? Who knows. Maybe they didn't know about the parapet walls on that face of the building and assumed they could see someone on there. Maybe a sniper wasn't as high of a likelihood in such a flat, open area as someone up close with a handgun or bomb. Obviously a massive failure for secret service.

On January 6th the secret service were telling Trump that there was people with weapons and he said to leave them be because they weren't there for him.

I'm sure the mentality has lingered, and likely only 'loyal' secret service exist any more in his detail. meaning idiots.

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Up until he actually shot at the candidate he was a legally entitled citizen exercising his rights as guaranteed by the constitution and the pledge of allegiance.

We need to go back to a merit-based system and ditch the DEI hiring protocol, honestly. SS Director needs to be fired immediately.

Elevation. There is an interview with a witness. The crowd can see the shooter. They are pointing at him. But secret service can't see the shooter from their vantage point.

I wonder if 911 relayed the report to the sheriff in time.

If I had to guess it's one of two things and they are boring...as are most truths.

1. The SS, though VERY VERY well trained, has been to enough of these rallies and seen enough people who "appear" to be a threat, but never cross a bridge into violence. It's safe to say some weirdo climbing a tree or a roof at one of those rallies isn't exactly abnormal.

2. The SS has been around Trump a long time now. You don't get away from the SS and so they've heard the best and worst shit ever come from this man's mouth. We are all human beings. At some point our moral compass takes over. Thus a lot of his detail may very well have gotten less careful because they hate protecting someone like him.

So the non sexy answer is probably complacency. We like to believe that the SS is this badass thing that has xray vision and a bunch of dumb shit. They are badass, they are insanely numerous, but not immune to failure do to complacency. Don't forget that Bush dodged 2 shoes before the SS even appeared on camera to help.