News Digest

Secret Service agents investigated for crash outside White House

The Homeland Security Department is investigating two senior Secret Service agents accused of crashing a car into a White House security barrier on March 4. According to the Washington Post, which reported the incident Wednesday, the agents drove a government car into a security barrier near the White House after a night of drinking. The Post reported that one of the agents involved is Mark Connolly, the second in command on President Barack Obama’s security detail. The newspaper identified the other agent as George Ogilvie, a senior supervisor in the Washington field office. The incident also drew the attention of Congress members, who have been critical of the agency for previous incidents.

The fact that this event involved senior-level agents is not only embarrassing but exhibits a clear lack of judgment in a potentially dangerous situation.

Joint statement from House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and Elijah Cummings, D-Md.

In the last six months, several top agency officials, including former Director Julian Pierson, have been forced out amid revelations of multiple, serious presidential security breaches. In September, a Texas man armed with a knife was able to climb a White House fence and run deep into the executive mansion before being apprehended. An internal investigation and an outside panel report both described major problems within the agency.