The Secret Service tightened security outside the White House after the embarrassing breach in which the intruder carrying a knife climbed the fence, ran across the lawn and entered the building before agents stopped him. The first family was away from the White House at the time. Increased surveillance and more officer patrols are among the measures that Secret Service Director Julia Pierson ordered. She also began an investigation into what went wrong. A member of the House Homeland Security Committee said Sunday that it was astonishing, at a time of concerns about terrorist attacks, that someone could actually get into the White House without being stopped. Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said the intrusion was absolutely inexcusable and he expected congressional hearings into the incident at one of the worlds most heavily secured buildings. This demands a full investigation, an investigation as to what happened, why it happened and whats being done to make sure it never happens again, he told Fox News Sunday. Officials first said the fact that the man appeared to be unarmed may have been a factor in why agents at the scene didnt shoot or have their dogs pursue him before he made it inside. But a criminal complaint issued late Friday revealed Gonzalez had a small folding knife with a 3 1/2-inch serrated blade with him at the time of his arrest.
Posted on: Sun, 21 Sep 2014 20:02:00 +0000