Curran was photographed while shielding presidential candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, after the first assassination attempt against Trump.
WASHINGTON—President-elect Donald Trump will appoint Sean Curran, the U.S. Secret Service special agent in charge of his personal protective detail, to lead the agency as its director, according to multiple reports.
Curran, in his current role, supervises all Secret Service agents and assets assigned to protect Trump and travels with him everywhere. He is constantly in close proximity to Trump, usually a few steps behind him, and travels with him in his armored vehicle. Curran was one of the first Secret Service agents to jump on stage and shield Trump on July 13, 2024, during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a would-be assassin attempted to shoot him, and was captured in photography of the event. On Jan. 17, members of the Trump family announced that Curran would be Trump’s appointee to serve as Director of the U.S. Secret Service, which does not require the Senate’s advice or consent.
“President Trump will be naming Sean Curran, who heads his personal detail, to be Secret Service Director,” wrote Donald Trump, Jr., the president-elect’s eldest son and honorary co-chair of the Trump-Vance Transition, on X. “Sean is a great patriot and will stop all the insanity once and for all. There’s not a better person to be in this position!”
Many elected officials of both the Democratic and Republican parties have criticized the Secret Service for failing to prevent the would-be assassins from bringing firearms within range of Trump in the two assassination attempts during his 2024 presidential campaign. In the case of the first attempt, several bullets were fired at Trump and one grazed his right ear. One audience member was killed and two others were hospitalized in the incident. The second attempt occurred on Sept. 15 at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Currently, an independent review process, ordered by President Joe Biden after the first attempt, is underway. Members of Congress have demanded changes to the leadership of the Secret Service after the incidents. The agency’s former director, Kimberly Ann Cheatle, resigned after bipartisan criticism from the House of Representatives’ Oversight and Accountability Committee in July.
Little is known publicly about Curran other than his employment by the Secret Service and leadership of Trump’s detail.
By Arjun Singh
