Crashergate Hearing: Secret Service Learned About Breach from Facebook

I’m at the House Committee on Homeland Security hearing on Crashergate, where Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan spent the morning on the hot seat for his agency’s failure to repel uninvited guests Michaele and Tareq Salahi from last Tuesday’s White House state dinner. Among the revelations this morning is the embarrassing fact that, according to Sullivan, the Secret Service learned of the breach on Facebook.

Also new is the fact that, as Sullivan says, “the officers are all on administrative leave, with pay” pending completion of the investigation. As far as I know, this is the first time the agency has said that there was more than one officer involved in the breach.

As we went to recess, I tried to question Sullivan about how many officers were involved, and if they had consulted anyone at all before allowing the Salahis onto the White house grounds, but one  of his aides body-checked me into the banister as Sullivan strode down the stairs.

Thus far, committee members from both parties have condemned the White House for not making social secretary Desiree Rogers available to the committee.

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