DEI run amok? Secret Service 'cat fight' outside Obama home raises questions

Two female Secret Service agents were caught on video tussling outside former President Barack Obama's residence in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, reigniting concerns that diversity, equity, and inclusion-related policies implemented under previous administrations continue to impact the agency negatively.

Around 2:30 a.m. on May 21, two agents assigned to guard the Obama home "got into a physical fight," according to Susan Crabtree of RealClearPolitics. Crabtree confirmed to Blaze News that both women are black. They were also likely armed at the time.

Crabtree told Blaze News that the altercation began after an agent with 15 years' experience became upset that her shift replacement, an agent with three years' experience, arrived late and in the wrong vehicle. The more senior agent then reportedly made a call to a Secret Service line, threatening violence in notably crude, colloquial terms.

"Can I get a supervisor down to Delta 2 before I whoop this girl's a**?" she said, according to audio shared by Crabtree.

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'We likely witnessed the catastrophic consequences of sacrificing job knowledge, skills, fitness standards, and personal conduct in favor of immutable gender and racial characteristics to meet arbitrary diversity standards.'

Shortly after that call, the fight broke out, Crabtree explained. She later shared video of it on X:

The crass language and brief scuffle both seem to qualify as "offenses" delineated in a "Professionalism in the Workforce" report prepared by the USSS and submitted to Congress by the Department of Homeland Security in 2015.

Screenshot of USSS report

In a statement obtained by Blaze News, the Secret Service acknowledged the "on-duty altercation" involving "two Uniformed Division officers." The statement claimed that both participants have been "suspended from duty."

"The Secret Service has a very strict code of conduct for all employees and any behavior that violates that code is unacceptable. Given this is a personnel matter, we are not in a position to comment further," the statement said.

A representative for Obama did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

Crabtree indicated to Blaze News that the fracas is yet another example of the "lowering of standards" at the "once-vaunted agency." She added that officials must give a strong response to it to demonstrate that they take such incidents "seriously."

Former FBI Special Agent Steve Friend claimed it is yet another "real-world consequence" of identity politics.

"Here we likely witnessed the catastrophic consequences of sacrificing job knowledge, skills, fitness standards, and personal conduct in favor of immutable gender and racial characteristics to meet arbitrary diversity standards," Friend said in a statement to Blaze News.

'What I’ve seen ... is a different set of standards based on gender.'

As the incident apparently involved two black female officers, many have begun to wonder whether past DEI emphases still affect the agency today, despite President Donald Trump's efforts to eradicate DEI policies across the federal government.

Though the alleged aggressor in the fight has been with the force for 15 years, the other officer joined just three years ago under President Joe Biden, who appointed Kimberly Cheatle to be USSS director in 2022. Just the second woman in history to lead the agency, Cheatle took several steps to increase female and minority representation at the Secret Service, including joining the 30x30 initiative, which called on law enforcement agencies across the country to increase female participation in policing to 30% by 2030.

Cheatle was still at the helm on July 13, 2024, when then-candidate Trump was shot and nearly assassinated during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Iconic images from the shooting showed both male and female Secret Service agents hustling to protect Trump and to shuttle him off the rally stage to safety.

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Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Video taken moments later went viral because it featured multiple female USSS agents gathered around the vehicle that would transport Trump away from the area. On the video, a heavyset female agent — seen in the above photo sliding off stage — struggled to holster her weapon. She and other agents, according to Friend, "appeared overwhelmed by the situation."

Cheatle resigned 10 days later.

In February, Special Agent Rashid Ellis, a 13-year veteran of the USSS, stated publicly that DEI policies were at least partially responsible for the Butler shooting. "My initial thoughts when seeing the Butler assassination attempt was dread," Ellis told the Independent Women’s Forum. "My stomach was in knots watching it because we had known for years that this was coming."

Though black, Ellis said he was passed up for a leadership position in part because of the agency's focus on gender "quotas."

"I’ve always viewed [it] as an honor and privilege to serve in this capacity. However ... what I’ve seen with the United States is a different set of standards based on gender."

While sources told Crabtree that some women at the USSS do excellent work, others have difficulty meeting physical standards and maintaining professionalism.

"To be in the Secret Service, you have to be worthy of trust and confidence," Ellis explained.

"Real danger is out there. We need to restore confidence. We have to be focused on the threat that’s outside and the threat that’s in front of us."

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