White House adviser John Kirby said that the investigation into the cocaine found in the West Wing was handled correctly, even though no suspects have been identified.
“They did the best they could to track down how it got there and who it might have belonged to,” Kirby said in the interview. “And they just were not able to come up with any forensic evidence that proves it.”
The Secret Service said on July 13 that no fingerprints or DNA were found on the bag of cocaine found in a personal effects locker leading into the lobby of the West Executive Avenue entrance of the White House on July 2, triggering concerns about the security implications of hard drugs making their way into one of the most closely guarded areas in the country.
‘Nobody’s Happy About This’
Not only was there insufficient forensic evidence on the bag, but blind spots meant that there was also no surveillance video footage that would have allowed investigators to track down who brought the drugs into the West Wing.“Without physical evidence, the investigation will not be able to single out a person of interest from the hundreds of individuals who passed through the vestibule where the cocaine was discovered,” the Secret Service said.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi had said in comments to NBC of the 500 potential suspects that had traveled through the area during the time in question, “We have no evidence to approach them.”
Despite the fact that investigators came up empty-handed, the Secret Service insisted that it takes its mission to protect the country’s leaders and key facilities seriously, while suggesting that efforts would be made to prevent similar gaps in security in the future.
Kirby echoed that sentiment in his interview on Fox News, saying that the discovery of cocaine in the White House is “not the kind of thing we want to see happen.”
‘No Equal Justice’
The discovery of cocaine at the White House sparked a torrent of criticism from Republicans, who received a closed briefing last week on the results of the investigation before the Secret Service made the information public.“No one knows how long it was there or who put it there, and they can’t get to the bottom of it,” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) told reporters on Capitol Hill on July 13. She noted that more than 500 people visited the White House on the weekend when the cocaine was found, while suggesting that the hypothesis that one of the visitors brought the drugs in isn’t unreasonable.
At the same time, Ms. Mace expressed dismay at the failure of the probe to determine who brought the drugs into the White House and when.
“This, as a member of Congress, is frustrating. It’s the most secure site, the most secure building in the world, with the best law enforcement officers in the world, and we don’t have any answers,” she said.
“From my perspective, it’s just frustrating. Every time we have questions about activity around the Biden White House, the administration’s family, no one can ever get any answers.”
Asked whether she thinks the matter might get taken up by the House Oversight Committee, Ms. Mace said it’s unlikely because lawmakers have their hands full with other investigations.
Some Republicans alleged there was a different standard for investigations pertaining to issues that could prove embarrassing to Biden.
“There is no equal justice,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told reporters on July 13. “Anything revolving around ‘Biden, Inc.’ gets treated different than any other American and that’s got to stop.”
House Republicans have launched a number of investigations into the Biden administration, including one into how government agencies colluded with big tech companies to censor Americans’ constitutionally protected free speech.
Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, suggested a coverup.
A Secret Service spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment on Mr. Trump’s allegations of a coverup.
‘Unknown Item’
On the evening of July 2, a substance initially described as an “unknown item” was first said to have been found in the White House library, prompting a brief evacuation.Although the Secret Service didn’t identify the nature of the substance, a D.C. firefighter said in a radio dispatch call at 8:49 p.m. on July 2 that the substance had tested positive for cocaine.
According to Mr. Guglielmi, the drugs were discovered in an area where West Wing staff, media personnel, visitors, and others involved in the security screening process gather.
Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said later that the administration would “let the Secret Service do its job” before determining what action it needs to take.
Ms. Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing on Monday that the White House has full confidence in the results of the probe, despite no suspect being named.
“We believe the Secret Service did a thorough investigation. We’ve been briefed on the outcome. They shared in detail, in a public statement, which I think is important for the American people to hear directly from the Secret Service, who did the investigation,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said on Monday.
