Donald Trump to appear at Pennsylvania rally, site of first assassination attempt – live

As the Trump and Harris campaigns ramp up into high gear for a final month of campaigning before election day – including at high profile rallies like today’s in Butler, Pennsylvania, the Secret Service is at “a breaking point,” NBC News reports.

A dozen current and former US Secret Service agents told NBC News that insufficient staffing and an increased workload have contributed to errors, like those in Butler when a gunman opened fire at Trump on July 13.

“There is a huge security risk because you already have agents that are burnt out, exhausted now having even less time to make a solid security plan and get all assets in order,” a current agent told NBC.

“I love my agency but they are setting themselves up for another incident,” said one former agent.

Both current and former officials told NBC they are are concerned the agency will witness a mass exodus of personnel over the next 18 months.

For more context on recent Secret Service failures, see Robert Tait and Ed Helmore’s reporting in The Guardian:

Still hours before Trump is scheduled to speak in Butler, Pennsylvania, this evening, reporters on the ground at the rally are reporting a large and eager crowd.

The Trump campaign is touting the rally as a return to “the very same ground where [Trump] took a bullet for democracy less than three months ago”.

A Pennsylvania voter tell Fox News: “I think we’re on hallowed ground today.”

Good morning, US politics blog readers. Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are touring the country this weekend, while their proxies do the same. Perhaps most notable: Trump is scheduled today to return to Butler, Pennsylvania – where a shooter attempted to assassinate him less than three months ago. He’ll be joined by the family of Corey Comperatore, a rallygoer who was shot and killed at a July rally.

Meanwhile, the vice-president is traveling to North Carolina today, where Hurricane Helene has devastated much of the state, killing at least 200 people. Harris will receive a briefing on recovery efforts, and provide updates on federal actions to support the emergency response.

Here’s what else is happening:

• The Trump campaign has announced a weekend-long tour of Georgia, which will make three stops in the state today, ending in Atlanta.

• Joe Biden and the first lady, Jill Biden, will travel to Camp David, where they will remain over the weekend.