A man armed with multiple weapons stormed through a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton hotel, which hosted the annual White House Correspondent Dinner with US President Donald Trump on Saturday (April 25). Muffled sounds of gunshots were heard in the ballroom that seated the guests, prompting security to evacuate Trump, First Lady Melania Trump and other senior leaders.Cole Allen, the alleged shooter, fired rounds from a shotgun that struck a Secret Service agent before being tackled by police, Reuters reported. His motive is unknown so far. Trump later posted on Truth Social, “Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely.”The episode has raised concerns about political violence in the US, coming after multiple security incidents involving Trump, in particular. Less than two years ago, he was shot at in a campaign rally, which led to the resignation of the then Director of the US Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle.The Secret Service is the agency primarily tasked with protecting the US president. But this was not always the case; in fact, the agency was initially founded to combat counterfeiting of US currency. Today, it is best associated with sunglasses-wearing agents and the armoured limousine attached to the president, called The Beast, but its day-to-day role involves a large number of complex tasks.Who are the US Secret Service?The US Secret Service was founded in 1865 and is one of the world’s oldest federal investigative law enforcement agencies. Its mandate changed after President William McKinley’s killing, who was the third US president assassinated after Abraham Lincoln and James A Garfield in 1865 and 1881, respectively.The US Government Archives note, “This third assassination of a President in a little more than a generation — it was only 36 years since Lincoln had been killed — shook the nation and aroused it to a greater awareness of the uniqueness of the Presidency and the grim hazards that surrounded an incumbent of that Office.”In India, the Special Protection Group (SPG) was established in 1985 — a year after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi — to provide security cover to the Prime Minister, former Prime Ministers and their immediate family members. They work in collaboration with the Intelligence Bureau and local police forces.Story continues below this adThe Secret Service assumed full-time responsibility for the safety of the US president in 1902. It works under the Department of Homeland Security and “employs approximately 3,200 special agents, 1,300 Uniformed Division officers, and more than 2,000 other technical, professional and administrative support personnel”, according to its website. US President Donald Trump after the assassination attempt in 2024.Apart from the president, the agency is also mandated to protect the vice president, the president-elect, their immediate families, former presidents and their spouses (except when the spouse remarries), children of former presidents until age 16, and foreign heads of state and their spouses visiting the United States.Candidates came under the agency’s ambit after the assassination of Robert Kennedy, who was running to become the Democratic Party’s official candidate for the 1968 presidential election. His death came less than five years after his brother, President John F Kennedy, was assassinated while riding through Dallas in a motorcade.And how does the Secret Service protect the US president?The Secret Service has the power to carry firearms and to make arrests without warrants for any offence or felony under “reasonable grounds”. Its website says, “We rely on meticulous advance work and threat assessments to identify potential risks to protectees. Our protective work starts long before our physical presence.”Story continues below this adBefore large events, agents scan the venue for bombs or other threats, with metal detectors and barricades installed for attendees. In the 2024 Trump rally, for instance, members of the Secret Service’s counter-sniper and counter-assault teams were stationed at the rally. The counter-sniper team uses long-range binoculars and has sniper rifles, while the counter-assault team works to eliminate threats so that other agents can shield and take away the person they are protecting.Explained | Lebanese reporter Amal Khalil killed in Israeli strikes: Why this is a war crimeTheir website states that “The Secret Service calls upon other federal, state and local agencies to assist on a daily basis. The Secret Service Uniformed Division, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the U.S. Park Police patrol the streets and parks nearby the White House. The Secret Service regularly consults with experts from other agencies in utilizing the most advanced security techniques.”The US military supports the Secret Service through Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams and communications resources. When the president is visiting another city, the agency coordinates with state and local law enforcement. Other internal security agencies can also help.How has the Secret Service changed since 2024?Former director Cheatle called the 2024 shooting at the Trump rally the “most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades.” This was followed by several official assessments of its shortcomings, which found issues ranging from a lack of processes for sharing classified threat information to the absence of cohesive communication to inadequate resources.Story continues below this adSome recommendations from the US House of Representatives Task Force were implemented over time, including a written policy for a threat-based methodology and consolidation of operational plans.