Just because you wear a badge doesn't mean you are brave.

In the interest of providing multiple sources, here is the account from the New York Post:

Local police encountered attempted-assassin Thomas Crooks just moments before he tried to kill former president Donald Trump — but failed to stop the gunman despite the clear threat, according to a report.

After rallygoers spotted Crooks on the roof of a manufacturing plant just 130 yards from the stage where Trump was speaking just after 6 p.m. Tuesday, police were notified and one officer climbed a ladder to investigate, law enforcement officials said on the condition of anonymity.

There the officer encountered Crooks, who pointed his AR-style rifle at them.

The officer then backed down the ladder, and Crooks immediately took aim and loosed eight shots at the former president - grazing him in the ear, killing one bystander in the rally crowd, and gravely wounding two others.

The shooter on the roof after this happened:

I'm going to withhold total judgement here - was the officer making a tactical decision to retreat and reengage behind cover, or was he chickening out because he found himself staring down the barrel of a gun and forgot his duty?

I dunno.

I know we need some serious beefing up of Secret Service protocol. More on that from a former agent here:

I also know that a beloved father is dead and a president is injured because the shooter wasn't stopped in time.

The lesson? Always be ready to be brave, gentlemen.

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