Goodlatte Statement on the Department of Homeland Security’s Secret Service Review
November 13, 2014
Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) issued the statement below following the release of an internal Department of Homeland Security review on the events of September 19, 2014, when Omar Gonzalez scaled the north fence and ran through the unlocked doors of the White House.
Chairman Goodlatte: “The Department of Homeland Security’s review of the mid-September security breach at the White House reads as a comedy of errors by the U.S. Secret Service and confirms that fundamental reform is needed to improve both the security of the White House grounds and staff training. This report makes clear that everything that could have gone wrong that evening did. Inadequate training, poor communication, and lax physical security at the White House led to this breach. We must ensure that the Secret Service has all of the tools, training, and resources necessary to protect the President, White House personnel, and the historic grounds.
“The Department’s review underscores the need for a thorough review of the agency’s protective mission and makes next week’s House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on the Secret Service even more critical. I and the other members of the House Judiciary Committee are anxious to get to the bottom of these problems at the agency so that we prevent such security lapses from happening again in the future.”
On Wednesday, November 19th at 10:00 a.m., the House Judiciary Committee, which has primary jurisdiction over the United States Secret Service, will hold a public oversight hearing on the agency and will then close a portion of it to the public to discuss classified matters. Acting Director Joseph Clancy will testify before the Committee.
Chairman Goodlatte: “The Department of Homeland Security’s review of the mid-September security breach at the White House reads as a comedy of errors by the U.S. Secret Service and confirms that fundamental reform is needed to improve both the security of the White House grounds and staff training. This report makes clear that everything that could have gone wrong that evening did. Inadequate training, poor communication, and lax physical security at the White House led to this breach. We must ensure that the Secret Service has all of the tools, training, and resources necessary to protect the President, White House personnel, and the historic grounds.
“The Department’s review underscores the need for a thorough review of the agency’s protective mission and makes next week’s House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on the Secret Service even more critical. I and the other members of the House Judiciary Committee are anxious to get to the bottom of these problems at the agency so that we prevent such security lapses from happening again in the future.”
On Wednesday, November 19th at 10:00 a.m., the House Judiciary Committee, which has primary jurisdiction over the United States Secret Service, will hold a public oversight hearing on the agency and will then close a portion of it to the public to discuss classified matters. Acting Director Joseph Clancy will testify before the Committee.