NEW YORK, July 26. /TASS/. The US Secret Service refused to use drones to ensure the security of Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump, who survived an assassination attempt at the rally in Pennsylvania, Fox News reported, citing a letter from Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.

According to the letter, the US Secret Service has repeatedly denied the proposals of local law enforcement agencies to utilize unmanned vehicles to ensure the event’s security. The US security agency requested the use of drones only after the incident.

On July 24, FBI Director Christopher Wray said that the rally shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, surveilled the rally location with a drone before making the assassination attempt. Previously, Mayorkas said that the Department of Homeland Security has initiated an independent probe into the actions of the US Secret Service during the attack on Trump.

Earlier, The Washington Post reported that the Secret Service has repeatedly denied the requests to allocate additional funding to reinforce Trump’s security. Trump’s advisors complained that the agency, tasked with protection of top US officials, "does not do enough to protect the former president."

Trump was shot during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13; Candidate Trump was lightly wounded in the ear. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was eliminated by the Secret Service, which specializes on protection of high-ranking officials, including presidents, presidential candidates and former presidents. The FBI said that it investigates the incident as an attempted assassination of Donald Trump.