How safe is President Obama? Not too safe if reports from White House are anything to go by. White House is supposed to be the most secure location on the planet, with the residents the most guarded individuals alive. This hasn't been the case lately with numerous breaches being reported under the watchful eye, or rather the sleepy eye, of the secret service.
On Tuesday, as the director of the U.S Secret Service appeared before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to answer questions as regards the recent spate of security breaches that have rocked White House, the director, Julia Pierson appeared to contradict the news reports.
Pierson's job includes briefing President Obama on any material breach that may have occurred on his safety or that of his family. On September 19, when Omar Gonzalez, a 42 year old troubled Iraq war veteran, scaled the fence of the White House, bypassing secret service security and making it to the East Room of the White House while armed with a knife, Pierson reported the incident to President Obama.
On September 16, just three days before, when the Obama was visiting the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, an armed contractor with an assault conviction shared the same lift with the President, before being discovered by the secret service.
Pierson, while being grilled, did not make any reference to the incident, causing speculation that she was denying its existence.
The secret service agency is tasked to determine who carries a weapon around the President. They determine who gets close to Obama or his family while armed. The recent breaches have left a foul stench in the agency's management, stirring talks on inefficiency.
"I believe the President's security was unnecessarily compromised," Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, told the press in a statement. "A convict with a gun in an elevator with the President put his life in danger. The Director should have informed the President, yet she testified she did not. Did she lie to Congress or fail to inform the President?"