On Tuesday, Julia Pierson, the U.S. Secret Service director, found herself in the hot seat before the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
On Sept. 19, Omar Gonzalez hopped the White House fence and made it through the door, causing outrage from Congress. Full details of the breech were just released, proving that Gonzalez made it much further into the White House than first thought. Pierson conceded that the breech was "unacceptable," took full responsibility for it and tried to reassure those in attendance that it will not happen again.
This week we learned that Gonzalez ran past the guard at the front door, past a staircase leading up to the Obamas' living quarters and into the East Room, which is about halfway across the first floor of the building. According to the media reports, getting so far into the building would have required Gonzalez to dash through the main entrance hall, turn a corner, then run through the center hallway halfway across the first floor of the building, which spans 168 feet in total, according to the White House Historical Association.
In other words, White House staffers got lucky in this case that this lone armed man was apprehended before he could cause any harm.
Gonzalez is not the first to successfully hop the fence this year either — there have been six incidents so far. It also is not sitting well that there was an attempt to cover up the gravity of Gonzalez's intrusion. The public and apparently Congress were first told that he was tackled right inside the front doors. Now we have learned that part of the security system may have actually been muted and the first Secret Service agent that Gonzalez encountered was overpowered by him.
Perhaps the real question is whether or not the right person is in charge. Should Pierson lose her position as part of the fallout in this case? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
© 2024 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
