More Security Lapses by Secret Service Disclosed Congressional committee says incidents show agency is ‘in crisis’ By Devlin Barrett
http://www.wsj.com/articles/more-security-lapses-by-secret-service-disclosed-1449118861
A congressional panel said it has uncovered an array of previously unknown security lapses by the Secret Service showing the agency is “in crisis’’ and needs major changes.
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform report, set to be released Wednesday, documents what it says are widespread problems at the Secret Service. The committee, led by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R., Utah), has been probing the agency since a 2012 scandal over agents bringing prostitutes back to their hotel rooms in Cartagena, Colombia.
The newly revealed security breakdowns cited in the report include:
Security at Vice President Joe Biden’s home in Delaware was breached in 2013 when four young adults went fishing in his backyard. The Secret Service learned of their presence from neighbors of Mr. Biden, according to the report.
A previously disclosed incident in which a man pretended to be a lawmaker to get backstage at a Congressional Black Caucus event was worse than initially thought. The man managed to speak directly to President Barack Obama at the 2014 event before being removed, the report says.
Last year, a Czech citizen with an expired visa was able to enter the property of a former president and remain undetected for almost an hour, the report said. People familiar with the matter said the incident involved the Texas home of former President George H.W. Bush—a breach made possible by a previously documented lack of a properly functioning alarm system.
The report also concluded that the last three Secret Service directors, including current head Joseph Clancy, have provided “false information’’ to the panel when questioned about incidents and operations. The committee said the service spends too much time on investigative matters like credit-card and computer fraud and not enough time on its protective duties.
A Secret Service spokesman didn’t immediately comment, though agency leaders have defended their record of protecting the president, senior officials and their families.
Mr. Clancy was named in February to lead the agency. He had served as interim director since October 2014, when Julia Pierson resigned as director amid the fallout from a series of security breaches.
The senior Democrat on the panel, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D., Md.), said he supported the findings and expected the report would be approved unanimously by Republicans and Democrats on the panel.
“This bipartisan report warns that Congress cannot make some of the biggest budget cuts in the history of the Secret Service and expect no repercussions to the agency’s staffing and its critical mission,” said Mr. Cummings.
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