i want to bring back in a.t. smith on that one more time.ince you were deputy director at the secret service, the fbi indicating today there has been a spike in this worrisome political rhetoric online that could mean more violence. if you're looking at protectees, including the current president, donald trump, what do you do? >> the secret service does monitor online activity, particularly when it comes to threats made against protectees. and, as sam said, that has increased over the last few days. it's increased dramatically over the last few years. and that's why the secret service initiated this section within headquarters to be able to monitor that sort of activity, whether it's groups making, sort of, statements or individuals. so, they do monitor that. but again, the lone wolf flies under the radar. it's hard to detect, especially when they don't include their plans with others. it looks like that's the profile of this iivua

a.t., i know you've been following the latest reporting here as well. our nicole sganga says that the shooter was about 200 to 300 feet away using an ar-style rifle. does that sound right to you in terms of the kind of -- the firing of the bullets didn't sound very rapid. you had one eyewitness tell us, no, it sounded like a .22. what did this description of the weapon allegedly used here indicate to you? >> yes, i think probably it was 2 to 300 yards instead of feet. >> 2 to 300 yards. >> yeah, it sounds like this individual was at least that far away. and an ar-style rifle can obviously hit a target or make that sort of a shot from that distance. usually from that distance, you know, there would be optics involved like a scope, and, you know, usually a more accurate shot would be something like a high powered rifle, like you think in terms of a deer rifle or something like a 30 r 6 or 223. clearly an ar-type rifle from that distance as long as he had the visual, had the ability to strike a target. now, obviously still undetermined how many rounds were

a.t., start with you, from what we are hearing from secret service, what do we know about the securityly here and what went wrong? >> well, obviously, the number one problem the most glaring question to be asked is how did this individual make it to the roof of that building with a long rifle, an ar-15 type rifle apparently? the secret service plan has three concentric rings of security, inner perimeter, middle and outer and the counter sniper team is responsible for that outer perimeter, up to a thousand yards and so it's their responsibility to pan out and watch all of that and look for the sort of thing that occurred yesterday. >> so did the secret service have adequate time to prepare for this rally? i understand this butler, pennsylvania, location had been used before by the trump campaign? >> yes. they did have an adequate amount of time. i spoke to my sources at the secret service. they were there several days in advance. there was no short knit or anything like that. >> sam, what are you hearing? in our reporting so far there appears to be no criminal background, no at least ob

a.t. smith. a.t., good to see you. thank you so much for joining us. >> thank you, norah, for having me. >> i think the number one question everybody has is how did this guy get so close to have a clear line of sight of the former president? >> you're exactly right. that is the question that has to be answered. this is something that should not have happened. the way the secret service security plan normally works is three concentric rings of security, an inner perimeter, a middle perimeter, and an outer perimeter. that outer perimeter can extend way out quite frankly, and that is the responsibility of the counter-sniper teams at an outdoor event like that, to monitor any activity sort of beyond that middle perimeter that may occur. and unknown at this point obviously was view obstructed or what exactly happened, but certainly it is not acceptable that a man was able to crawl up on a roof that close with a long rifle and ultimately fire those shots. >> yeah, a.t. you know i've covered a nu

let's start with just the same question i asked a.t.list of questions on your notepad of what you would want answered based on the facts as you know them right now? >> think there are two lines of effort underway. the first is the investigation into the perpetrator himself. a press conference last night, law enforcement did not rule out the fat that this individual did not act alone. so i am keen to hear whether law enforcement believes this threat has been totally neutralized and there are not other co-conspirators. at the same time, there is also a need to have an independent investigation into the intelligence and operational failures that led to this moment. this individual was not known to law enforcement. investigators are likely still looking into whether he made concerning statements to his family and others and if that was or was not known to law enforcement and why and what security protocols the u.s. secret service had in place, what led to their determination on the extent of the secure perimeter, and again the command and c

. >> and a.t., how large are perimeters for these types of events? for someone to have been able to breach the perimeter and posted potentially outside of it and have the precision they may have had, we know that we see some blood on the president's ear. how wide is the perimeter usually? >> it really depends on the venue. if there is natural barriers between the outskirts of the perimeter and further distance, then we're talking about natural obstruction, then that is going to play a role in how big the perimeter becomes. there was a counter sniper team there whose responsibility it is to be on the lookout, to constantly monitor these long-range potential threats. and, if, in a in fact that, is the case and that's what happened and they did neutralize him, it sounds like the counter assault team -- i'm sorry, the counter sniper team reacted correctly and again if they killed the suspect, then that's part of why they're there. >> we're being -- it is now the top of the hour. i want to recap for anyone joining us. the hard to believe incident that has

you see a security failure as margaret brennen and others have been detailing what they're reporting, a.t. smith and others have been discussing. they have someone as cbs news confirmed on an elevated structure just hundreds of yards away from a former president of the united states. one of the most arguably protected people in the country. all former presidents of the united states have lifetime security from the united states secret service. a breach today in butler, pennsylvania. you can see the alleged suspect who is now dead on the roof of this structure not far from the crowd. and you had eyewitness said pouring out of this event in butler, pennsylvania, expressing aastonishment that some of them saw this person on the roof and shocked the secret service ultimately did take action to take out the shooter but of course not in time before something happened with an apparent firearm. the former president his fist in the air. that photo, photos and image of trump leaving the stage with his arm in the air have circulated like wildfire among his closest supporters and allies. and it shoul

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