Sara Carter – The Secret Service has rejected House Majority Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s claims Wednesday that the government shutdown makes the agency ill-prepared to secure President Donald Trump’s State Of The Union address scheduled for Jan. 30, 2019.
“Secret Service is fully ready to offer full protection during the SOTU. It’s a no-fail mission,’ the official says. Though USSS personnel are not being paid, the intelligence & protection functions are fully staffed,” said a senior law enforcement official to NBC’s Peter Alexander Wednesday. Alexander posted the response on Twitter.
“We’ve been planning for this for months, as we always do. It didn’t start up 29 days ago,” the official said,” Alexander posted in a follow up Tweet.
I’ve got questions for Speaker Pelosi. If you want to know what they are continue reading below.
Secret Service is fully ready to offer full protection during the #SOTU, a sr. law enforcement official tells @petewilliamsnbc.
"It's a no-fail mission," the official says.
Though USSS personnel are not being paid, the intelligence & protection functions are fully staffed. (1/2)— Peter Alexander (@PeterAlexander) January 16, 2019
It’s interesting that Pelosi, who said extending the border wall is not necessary for national security, is complaining that highly skilled and top-trained security personnel won’t be able to sufficiently protect her and her congressional colleagues during the SOTU.
Two questions for Pelosi:
1- “Speaker Pelosi, you say you want to postpone the State of The Union due to lack of security, yet you’re fighting the administration on the extension of the border wall. Do you believe Congressional members deserve more security than the American people?
2- Is Secret Service security at The Capitol more concerning to you than the security of the U.S. Mexico border?”
If this is the case one has to wonder. Security at the State of The Union is extensive. Secret Service, along with Capitol Police and a slew of other law enforcement agencies take extensive measures for months in advance to ensure that our elected government officials are secured during #SOTU.
Pelosi, however, says the government shutdown will make it less secure. Ironic, since what Border Patrol and other law enforcement agencies complain about most is not having enough resources or infrastructure to adequately secure the U.S. Mexico border.
Pelosi’s Letter of Concern To Trump
In her letter to Trump this week, Pelosi said, “Sadly, given the security concerns and unless government reopens this week, I suggest that we work together to determine another suitable date…”
Well, we know from the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies that they are ready and capable of securing the SOTU. Now, if Pelosi would just shift her attention to securing the U.S. Mexico border – via a border wall – maybe the government can get back to business and she won’t have to be so worried about security on multiple fronts.
Today, I wrote to @realDonaldTrump recommending that we delay the State of the Union until after government re-opens, as the @SecretService, the lead federal agency for #SOTU security, faces its 26th day without funding. https://t.co/K2oL8WGvqo pic.twitter.com/g3fIlxDbbK
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 16, 2019
SF Source Sara Carter Jan 2019