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Former Secret Service agent warns agency ‘stretched thin’ with new responsibilities, lack of manpower

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Former Secret Service agent warns agency ‘stretched thin’ with new responsibilities, lack of manpower

Days after a would-be assassin killed a bystander and wounded two others while trying to kill former President Donald Trump, questions remain about how an armed man was able to climb onto a rooftop less than 150 yards from a major political candidate with a rifle and a clear line of sight.

The modern Secret Service is “stretched too thin” with new responsibilities and protectees, while its budget and manpower haven’t caught up with the times, according to a former agent and security consultant who said there were missed chances in the past two decades that left his former agency overworked.

“They got a real opportunity after 9/11 to ask for increased funding, double the size of the agency, really increase the capabilities, and none of the directors did that,” said Bill Gage, an expert on active shooter response who retired from the Secret Service after 13 years with the agency, including 6 ½ as a member of the counter assault team.

HERO TRUMP RALLY VICTIM COREY COMPERATORE DIED SHIELDING FAMILY AND ‘WOULD’VE DONE IT AGAIN,’ FRIEND SAYS

Police snipers return fire after shots were fired while Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump was speaking at a campaign event in Butler, Pa., on Saturday, July 13, 2024.  (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

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“In a perfect world, you have 30 CS teams and 500 agents,” he said, using the agency’s acronym for the counter-sniper team that took out the assassin. “But the Service just doesn’t have those resources.”

Even a third of that manpower would have been sufficient, he said.

Instead, videos from the rally show just a single CS team returning fire and neutralizing the suspect as a group of agents on the ground swarmed the former president, shielding him with their bodies.

PENNSYLVANIA TRUMP RALLY SHOOTING SUSPECT PICTURED AFTER DEADLY ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surround by U.S. Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

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Additional agents in tactical gear were pictured over the suspect’s corpse on the rooftop moments later.

The Service’s duties have expanded, and the country is also in an active stretch of the busy 2024 campaign season, where President Biden and his predecessor and challenger, Trump, are both on the road regularly; the Republican National Conference is set to kick off in Milwaukee – and Chicago will host the Democratic National Conference in a few more weeks.

TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT SHINES LIGHT ON RALLY SECURITY

Law enforcement officers on the move during a rally on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“When I first joined the service in 2002, we were only protecting the president, the vice president and a few members of their family,” Gage told Fox News Digital. “By the time I left, we were protecting the vice president’s grandkids, foreign presidents, former presidents who were taking trips overseas.”

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As the list of protectees expanded, so did the list of threats. The Islamic State terror group rose alongside Al-Qaeda. Fears grew about home-grown terrorism. But the Service saw no significant growth in budget or personnel, Gage said.

TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT BEING INVESTIGATED BY FBI AS POTENTIAL DOMESTIC TERROR

This graphic shows a bird’s eye view of the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, as well as the alleged would-be assassin’s vantage point. (Fox News)

The U.S. Secret Service has also faced questions over its preparedness and a number of scandals in recent years.

The agency took more heat this week after a would-be assassin climbed on top of a building outside the secure perimeter of a Trump rally in Pennsylvania. The suspect, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, died at the scene after a Secret Service counter-sniper team returned fire.

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PENNSYLVANIA TRUMP RALLY ATTENDEE SPEAKS ON ‘EXTREMELY LAX’ SECURITY MEASURES AFTER ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

But not before he fatally struck a 50-year-old engineer named Corey Comperatore, a father of two.

He also wounded two other spectators – and Trump was seen with blood on the side of his head after he said a bullet punctured his right earlobe.

Authorities approach the suspected gunman from where he fell after the U.S. Secret Service returned fire after an apparent assassination attempt on former President Trump. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)

Crooks climbed up on top of a building across from the rally with an AR-15-style rifle.

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LIVE UPDATES: REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION 

Authorities have been criticized for a delayed response after witnesses spotted the armed Crooks on the roof and began to shout for help.

Bethel Park School District can confirm that the alleged shooter in the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt on former President Donald J. Trump is a graduate of Bethel Park High School. Thomas Matthew Crooks graduated from Bethel Park High School with the Class of 2022. (Bethel Park School District)

But Gage and other experts argue that the agents on scene were likely already responding amid the chaos.

“I think these people are probably being honest and sincere, but to say that nothing was being done, you know, until we can get transcripts of the radio traffic, I think that’s just wild speculation,” he said.

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Still, he said, with more planning and resources, the attack could’ve been thwarted earlier.

Former Buffalo Township Fire Chief Corey Comperatore pictured with his daughters in an undated family photo. Authorities say Thomas Matthew Crooks, who attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania, Saturday, struck and killed Comperatore in the crossfire. Secret Service agents returned fire, killing Crooks. (Helen Comperatore/Facebook)

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“I love the Secret Service, but it’s not without fault,” he said. “And I think there was some fault here. Both in the planning and the resources that were devoted to this.”

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Maine

Housing affordability key issue in Maine’s housing crisis, report shows

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Housing affordability key issue in Maine’s housing crisis, report shows


A new report is showing some progress when it comes to housing in Maine, but affordability continues to remain a key challenge.

According to a report by MaineHousing, the income needed to afford a median priced home in the state has increased 187 percent between 2015 and 2024.

In that same period, the state’s median income only went up 44 percent.

The rental market has not fared better, as it is affected by the dramatically increased cost of real estate across Maine, according to the report.

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Despite MaineHousing’s record success in 2025 with its first-time homebuyer program, the demand from homebuyers continues to outstrip the supply of homes for sale.

While year-over-year price increases were lower than in the recent past, the supply pressure is not likely to ease meaningfully until interest rates tick down more.

Maine home for sale (WGME)

“Maine, a state famous for natural beauty and quality of life, has become an attractive location for telecommuters and retirees who often have larger home-buying budgets than Mainers,” MaineHousing said in the report.

In a look at the state’s homelessness crisis, the report suggests underfunding at homeless service centers is leading to skewed data.

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According to MaineHousing, housing production is one key to solving these problems.

“MaineHousing’s affordable housing production remains well above historical averages, with 755 low and middle-income units coming online in 2025, and a record future production pipeline extending through the next few years,” MaineHousing said in the report.

While affordable housing production is increasing, unpredictable support at the federal and state levels and high construction costs could still bring that increase to a halt in future years.

Moving into 2026, Maine shows evidence of progress on several fronts of the housing crisis, but there is still much work to be done.



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Massachusetts

See top 50 highest-paid state workers in Massachusetts in 2025

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See top 50 highest-paid state workers in Massachusetts in 2025


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In 2025, University of Massachusetts employees earned some of the largest salaries among state workers.

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For example, Francisco Martin, head basketball coach at UMass Amherst, made $2.18 million last year, according to the Office of the Comptroller’s statewide payroll database. Dr. Michael Collins, chancellor of UMass Chan Medical School, made $1.57 million.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts paid a total of $10.89 billion to state employees in 2025, including $1.82 billion to UMass employees, $955.4 million to MBTA employees, $680.68 million to trial court employees and $486.19 million to Department of Developmental Services employees.

The public payroll also lists the 2025 salaries for Gov. Maura Healey, Attorney General Andrea Campbell and other public officials. They didn’t make the top 50, but their pay is listed below.

Check out the 50 highest-paid Massachusetts state workers in 2025.

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50 highest-paid state workers in MA in 2025

Here were the 50 highest-paid Massachusetts state workers in 2025, according to the statewide payroll:

  1. Francisco Martin – UMass Head Basketball Coach ($2.18 million)
  2. Michael Collins – UMass Chan Medical School Chancellor, Senior Vice President of Health Sciences ($1.57 million)
  3. Joseph Harasymiak – UMass Head Football Coach ($1.41 million)
  4. Terence Flotte – UMass Chan Medical School Executive Deputy Chancellor & Provost, T.H. Chan School of Medicine Dean ($1.18 million)
  5. Partha Chakrabarti – UMass Chan Medical School Executive Vice Chancellor for Innovation & Business Development ($1.01 million)
  6. Ryan Bamford – UMass Athletic Director ($912,226)
  7. Martin Meehan – UMass President ($879,454)
  8. Lisa Colombo – UMass Chan Medical School Executive Vice Chancellor of ForHealth Consulting ($821,872)
  9. Javier Reyes – UMass Amherst Chancellor ($731,684)
  10. Donald Brown – Former UMass Head Football Coach ($705,440)
  11. Gregory Carvel – UMass Hockey Coach ($701,048)
  12. Marcelo Suarez-Orozco – UMass Boston Chancellor ($699,908)
  13. John Lindstedt – UMass Chan Medical School Executive Vice Chancellor for Administration & Finance ($699,175)
  14. Kenneth Rock – UMass Chan Medical School Chair in Biomedical Research ($692,780)
  15. Katherine Fitzgerald – UMass Chan Medical School Department of Medicine Vice Chair ($676,959)
  16. Gregory Volturo – UMass Chan Medical School Chair in Emergency Medicine ($644,380)
  17. Mark Fuller – UMass Dartmouth Chancellor ($626,750)
  18. Anne Massey – UMass Isenberg School of Management Dean ($599,242)
  19. Peter Reinhart – UMass Institute for Applied Life Sciences Founding Director ($574,265)
  20. Julie Chen – UMass Lowell Chancellor ($549,614)
  21. Andrew McCallum – UMass Center for Data Science & Artificial Intelligence Director ($544,451)
  22. David Flanagan – UMass Chan Medical School Deputy Executive Vice Chancellor for Facilities Management ($533,562)
  23. Donald Towsley – UMass Quantum Information Systems Institute Director ($528,922)
  24. Fouad Abd-El-Khalick – UMass Provost, Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs ($515,870)
  25. Lisa Calise – UMass Senior Vice President for Administration & Finance, Treasurer ($511,275)
  26. Phillip Eng – MBTA General Manager ($509,114)
  27. James Healy – UMass Chan Deputy Vice Chancellor for Management ($496,647)
  28. Adam Wise – UMass Boston Vice Chancellor for University Advancement ($491,793)
  29. Mindy Hull – Massachusetts Chief Medical Examiner ($491,017)
  30. Roger Davis – UMass Chan Medical School Program in Molecular Medicine Chair ($486,238)
  31. Celia Schiffer – UMass Institute for Applied Life Sciences Chair of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology ($478,484)
  32. Jeroan Allison – UMass Chan Medical School Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences Chair ($477,782)
  33. Craig Mello – UMass Chan Medical School Chair in Molecular Medicine ($476,992)
  34. Mary Ahn – UMass Chan Medical School Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs ($475,597)
  35. James Watkins – UMass Associate Vice Chancellor for Research & Engagement, Strategic Research Initiatives ($474,133)
  36. David McManus – UMass Chan Professor and Chair of Medicine ($471,586)
  37. Richard Gregory – UMass Chan Medical School Department of Molecular, Cell & Cancer Biology Chair ($469,918)
  38. Maxwell Mayer – UMass Chan Medical School Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences ($469,843)
  39. Sanjay Raman – UMass Dean of Engineering ($468,972)
  40. Nefertiti Walker – UMass Senior Vice President for Academic & Student Affairs & Equity ($462,152)
  41. Fousseni Chabi-Yo – UMass Isenberg School of Management Finance Department Chair ($461,411)
  42. Murugappan Muthukumar – UMass Wilmer D. Barrett Professor ($460,783)
  43. Mark Johnson – UMass Chan Medical School Chair in Neurosurgery ($458,421)
  44. Hong Yu – UMass Lowell Center of Biomedical and Health Research in Data Sciences Director ($458,025)
  45. Sheldon Zhang – UMass Lowell School of Criminology and Justice Studies Professor ($453,950)
  46. Albertha Walhout – UMass Chan Medical School Department of Systems Biology Chair, Chair in Biomedical Research ($450,591)
  47. Zhiping Weng – UMass Chan Medical School Chair in Biomedical Research ($450,591)
  48. Beth McCormick – UMass Chan Medical School Department of Microbiology Chair ($450,591)
  49. Shlomo Zilberstein – UMass Amherst Professor of Computer Science ($450,108)
  50. Abdallah Georges Assaf – UMass Isenberg School of Management Professor ($447,486)

How much did Gov. Maura Healey make in 2025?

Gov. Maura Healey did not break the top 50, making $242,509 as a state employee in 2025, according to the payroll.

Her salary increased from $222,185 in 2024 and $220,288 in 2023.

How much did Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll make in 2025?

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll made $216,292 in 2025, according to the state payroll.

Her salary increased from $198,165 in 2024 and $187,952 in 2023.

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How much did Attorney General Andrea Campbell make in 2025?

Attorney General Andrea Campbell made $223,495 as a state employee in 2025, according to the official payroll.

This salary is up from $222,639 in 2024 and $203,401 in 2023.

How much did Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble make in 2025?

Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble made $292,711 in 2025, according to the state payroll. Noble was named colonel in October 2024.

How much did Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin make in 2025?

Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin made $202,427 as a state employee in 2025, according to the payroll.

In 2024, he made $201,850, and in 2023, he made $187,433.

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How much did State Treasurer and Receiver General Deborah B. Goldberg make in 2025?

State Treasurer and Receiver General Deborah B. Goldberg made $260,637 in 2025, according to the state payroll.

Goldberg made $238,794 in 2024 and $236,901 in 2023.

How much did State Auditor Diana DiZoglio make in 2025?

State Auditor Diana DiZoglio made $253,494 in 2025, according to the state payroll.

Her salary increased from $229,377 in 2024 and $213,224 in 2023.

How much did former State Police Trooper Michael Proctor make in 2025?

Now-former State Police Trooper Michael Proctor made $3,617 in 2025, according to the state payroll.

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Proctor, who served as the lead investigator in the Karen Read case, was put on unpaid leave in July 2024 and then fired in March, accused of violating four department policies.

In 2024, Proctor was paid $79,266, and in 2023, he was paid $146,053.



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New Hampshire

NH dog facility owner charged with animal cruelty after video surfaces online

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NH dog facility owner charged with animal cruelty after video surfaces online


A 26-year-old woman, who owns a dog training and kennel facility in Brentwood, New Hampshire, has been arrested after a video surfaced online showing apparent animal cruelty in Methuen, Massachusetts.

Brentwood police notified the Methuen Police Department about the video on Jan. 2. A preliminary investigation then identified the woman in the video as Maddison Eastman.

Police obtained an arrest warrant for Eastman on two counts of animal cruelty, and she turned herself into Lawrence District Court last Wednesday.

Eastman was arraigned Friday. Information from her court appearance wasn’t immediately available, and officials haven’t released further details about what Eastman allegedly did.

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Methuen police said they’ll have no further comment at this time and referred all inquiries to the Essex County District Attorney’s Office.



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