There’s lots of things that should get Congress upset starting with Russia’s increasing aggressiveness and isolation, China’s military expansion and suppression of rights, the millions of refugees driven from their homes by war, the failure of the Arab nations to fight for themselves, the looming Ebola crisis, the unfairness of the U.S. tax laws, the FBI’s secrecy, the dire condition of our infrastructure and the waste in and effectiveness of our military, to name a few issues.
These are important issues that require deep consideration and can be addressed in a bipartisan manner in the interests of all Americans. But expecting Congress to spend time on serious issue is like expecting your kid to avoid the temptations of college life. It just won’t happen.
What our Congress members like is to have an issue that amounts to little or nothing, call a hearing, and then get outraged about it. It’s all theater. The media, like the old-time circus hucksters, are guaranteed to give the greatest coverage to the most outrageous statements. Each Congress member tries to outdo the other. One or two of these happenings a session makes them feel like they are doing something.
This week we saw the act at work. The stooge, or piñata, this time was the Secret Service director, Julia Pierson a thirty year member of that service. Ms Pierson sat there under the three and a half hour constant bombardment by the members. She remained cool under fire which brought the outrage of one member who said: “I don’t sense from you, Director Pierson, a sense of outrage. A sense of mission that you want to reform and correct this cascading set of mistakes that led to, potentially, a catastrophe.” I only had wished Ms Pierson answered: “what do you want, tears?”
She had to listen while being assaulted with the words: “Stunning, Absolutely disgraceful, Outrageous, Just mind-boggling, Gross neglect, Unacceptable and Profoundly inadequate.” Our Congressman Steven Lynch who pops up at times of a gang-up as he did with Billy Bulger showed his outrage with an inane comment: “I wish you spent the time protecting the White House that you spent protecting your reputation here today.” So she’s not supposed to defend herself?
Lynch also added that he had: “low confidence in the Secret Service under your leadership.” She’s been director for less than a year and a half. She came into a real mess. It seems some Secret Service agents bristled at the idea of working for her. Nothing has happened to assail her like that.
The publicity though was invigorating to the members of Congress. They appeared on cable news showing increased ire. They continued their feigned outrage demanding Ms Pierson’s resignation.
The cause for the hearing was the September 19, 2014, breach of the White House security by a man CNN described as: ”Omar Gonzalez, a 42-year-old knife-wielding Iraq war veteran, entered an unlocked door to the executive mansion.” The only problem with the description is he was not wielding any knife (it was found in his pocket) and he ran through a door in the process of being locked. Another issue was brought up which was the 2011 incident when someone shot seven bullets at the second floor of the Whitey House. Putting that on Ms Pierson’s plate was unfair since she’s only been director since 2013.
The bottom line in all this is that the Secret Service did its job. No one was hurt by Gonzalez or the bullets. Neither incident could have been prevented unless fleet Secret Service agents were stationed every 100 yards on the White House lawn.
Gonzales jumped over the fence at the White House. He was immediately spotted and the chase was on. He made it to the entrance before he could be stopped. A female agent there was pushed out of the way by him. He was never out of sight of chasing agents. He made it to a corridor while running and down to a room where he was tackled and apprehended by at least two secret service agents.
One member found that was not enough. He wants lethal force used if anyone intrudes on the White House grounds. I hope that doesn’t include the toddler who squeezed through the fence last August 7. If that member had his way we’d have had 24 dead Americans since 1980 who were in reality no threat to anyone.
I assume if Gonzalez had demonstrated he was armed he would have been shot. He didn’t. He was handled appropriately. The 2011 shots at the window were stopped by the bullet proof glass inside the shattered glass. There was no way to stop that shooting before it happened. This hearing was unnecessary and perhaps that is why it happened.
If Congress wants to do its job it should stop faking it with these hearings where no harm has happened. If it wants to be outraged it should be about an incident where harm happened. Why no investigation of the incident involving Miriam Carey, 34, of Stamford, Ct, who allegedly tried to break the White House barrier, fled, and was shot and killed as she sat in her car at a barrier by the Capitol police. Or, if it truly wants to do its job it should bring in the FBI Director and question him about some of the failings of that agency. Can you imagine any Congressman throwing the vile adjectives at him that they did against Ms Pierson? Did they assail her like they did because she was a woman?
From all I can see the president has been well protected by the Secret Service. Congress has a penchant for ganging up on those who can’t defend themselves. I for one hope Ms Pierson will continue in the job. She’s a professional. She’s done no harm. No harm has been done.
Yes, Excellent comments NC, Ms.Freeh and William !!!!!!!!!!!!
I second that Bill!
In other news…..
see link for full story
see link for full story
FBI moves to fire 11 whistleblowers, key senator fears retaliation
Eleven served with Loss of Effectiveness orders, warned of possible firings
“These whistleblowers never have the opportunity to make their case,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican. “It’s stereotypical treatment of whistleblowers for the executive branch.” (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)
“These whistleblowers never have the opportunity to make their case,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican. “It’s stereotypical treatment of whistleblowers for the executive branch.”
– Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Eleven whistleblowers in the FBI say the bureau is targeting them for termination in retaliation for their revelations about FBI wrongdoing, the top Republican on the Senate Committee on the Judiciary announced Wednesday.
The whistleblowers, who have spoken out about various problems and wrongdoing at the law enforcement agency, said they recently have been served with Loss of Effectiveness orders, warning that their performance is suffering and that they could soon be fired.
“These whistleblowers never have the opportunity to make their case,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican. “It’s stereotypical treatment of whistleblowers for the executive branch.”
SEE ALSO: Whistleblowers flood VA with lawsuits despite apology
The letters sent to the employees mark the first major case showing how new FBI Director James B. Comey may react to internal whistleblowers.
Mr. Grassley noted that the Loss of Effectiveness orders don’t allow employees an appeal and bypass the bureau’s Office of Professional Responsibility, which usually deals with employee matters.
“If these allegations are true, the FBI’s treatment of whistleblowers stands in stark contrast with how it treats agents who have been found by [internal investigators] to have committed actual, disciplinable offenses,” Mr. Grassley said in a September letter to the FBI director.
The senator cited the case of an FBI agent who was having a relationship with a foreign citizen and had divulged sensitive information. The agent was never sent a Loss of Effectiveness (LOE) letter, and the agent’s case was handled through the Office of Professional Responsibility, he said.
“There is serious cause for concern that the FBI’s use of LOEs may be similarly arbitrary and capricious in other cases as well as a tool of whistleblower retaliation,” Mr. Grassley wrote.
Officials at the FBI could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening.
But in a September response to Mr. Grassley’s letter, the bureau said that LOE letters are a means to “maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of our workforce.”
“The FBI intends the process to be fair and to improve the efficiency of the workforce,” the bureau said. “A LOE transfer does not result in a loss in pay or a demotion in rank.”
“All FBI employees are subject to being moved from a particular assignment for the betterment of the organization and to promote the leadership qualities needed for the FBI to be effective,” the bureau letter said.
The whistleblowers said the FBI Office of Integrity and Compliance is concerned about the issue of retaliation and is working on drafting changes to the agency’s policies on the treatment of whistleblowers.
Mr. Grassley pointed to the case of agent Richard Kiper, who was working as the unit chief of the Investigative Training Unit in the FBI Training Division. But Mr. Kiper claims FBI leaders gave him a Loss of Effectiveness letter in July 2013 in retaliation after he provided information on problems in the training curriculum and business process. Based on the Loss of Effectiveness order, Mr. Kiper was demoted.
The FBI has taken retaliatory action against whistleblowers in the past. In 2007 former agent Jane Turner won a court case against the agency after she was forced out due to retaliation. FBI officials said she had tarnished the agency’s reputation for reporting about the potential theft of property from ground zero in New York City.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/oct/1/fbi-whistleblowers-claim-retaliatory-targeting-for/#ixzz3ExQlf5C4
I second all of NC’s excellent comments.
When Grieg is called to the grand jury she should answer every question ” what do you want tears”. She should have gone to trial and claimed she was kidnapped by a guy with 30 guns. O’Reilley’s next book is Killing Todashev. A guest on his program said BHO should be praised because we haven’t had any terrorist attacks on American soil on his watch. Bill didn’t challenge the claim. Guess the Marathon bombing didn’t happen. 2. Congressional elections next month. This will be twenty straight times voting against the incumbent God bless the USA. Stop the endless wars. Do we have a dog in the Sunni-Shia fight? No. End the secret, closed National Security state and revoke the doctrine of FBI infallibility. None of those agencies are any different than the Post Office. Clapper, the head of Intel is caught lying to Congress about the NSA and no sanction is imposed. Many in the Administration lie about Benghazi. So it’s not surprising the FBI dissembles about Tsarnaev. The Cold War is over. Restore the citizens freedom. Try telling the truth.
Down here in the whisper stream a bunch of
us detected a seismic testosterone laden grunt coming
from the direction of Washington.
Who would have guessed it was the last
paroxysm of the Patriachals,eh?
In other news Matt really thought we elected
people to Congress.
We brought Leonard Gates to speak
at our 4th Annual Conference Investigating Crimes Committed by FBI agents
He was committing voter fraud for the FBI.
Greg Flannery drove him to our conference from Cincinnati.
Greg is the author of this article about Leonard Gates.
I checked the link and it works
https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http://64.62.200.70/PERIODICAL/PDF/InTheseTimes-1989mar22/12-14/
★ Matt :
This might help. Everytime you picture Ms. Pierson in minds eye before that hoary political horde of Congressional hornets, place Maggie Thatcher in her stead. Woe to the hornets !!!!!!!!! 🙂
* … her and her Sex …
★ In other words Matt … Ms.Pierson, rather than being some shy damsel at the mercy of a …. ” Congress that has a penchant for ganging up on those who can’t defend themselves ” … was very able to speak for herself and her Agency, and defend both. She required no White Knight on a noble Steed to rescue her from the dark Duke of South Boston, Stevie Lynch 🙂 … To state it otherwise does she and her Sex an unintentioned, but perceptible, disservice.
Matt :
It is unfortunate, but apparently an inescapable legacy of history that because the Secret Service head is a woman that this dog and pony show, that is like most Congressional hearings, should in Ms. Pierson’s case be styled as a Congressional Gang Bang. You are right … She was dignified, and held her own. When any powerful woman is allowed to do that without her performance being viewed through the lens of gender, then we are finally respecting the equality of men and women ; We allow Ms.Pierson in her official capacity as a CHIEF to step up to the table and give as well or better than she got. Any other treatment or analysis that invokes gender is perhaps well intentioned paternalism, and has a chauvinistic benign condescension in its tones.