Secret Service investigating suspicious powder found at the White House : NPR

Table Of Content

• Colin Jost touches on President Biden's biggest controversies, 2024 campaign
• Colin Jost headlines White House Correspondents' Dinner with cocaine, O.J. Simpson jokes
• US Marshal among 4 law enforcement officers killed in shooting near Charlotte — one suspect dead, 2 others detained
• More in Celebrity News
• Steve Doocy Tells His Fox & Friends Colleagues the Economy Is Strong Under Biden: ‘A Lot of the Numbers Are Good’
• Elie Honig Baffled by Lack of Ruling on Trump Gag Order: ‘I’m Mystified by This’

The substance had tested positive for cocaine on a preliminary field test, the official familiar with the investigation said Tuesday, and the formal lab test confirmed that result. He and his family were at the presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, not the White House, when the cocaine was discovered. In a review of recent years, the Secret Service found two incidents in which small amounts of marijuana were detected by Uniformed Division officers and reports were filed, Secret Service officials said.

Colin Jost touches on President Biden's biggest controversies, 2024 campaign

"It's deeply frustrating," Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, told reporters. "This is one of the most secure locations in the world, some of the best law enforcement  officers in the world. And they don't have any answers." The president was briefed on the incident, and the discovery of the cocaine prompted questions from Republicans in the House. Oversight Committee chairman James Comer said last week his panel will assess the White House's security practices, and the Secret Service on Thursday provided a closed-door briefing for the committee.

Colin Jost headlines White House Correspondents' Dinner with cocaine, O.J. Simpson jokes

The former president has repeatedly warned he could go after Joe Biden — if he wins the 2024 election. Eric Trump suggested that President Joe Biden could someday be indicted over cocaine found at the White House in the summer of 2023 — should the Supreme Court rule presidents do not have total immunity for their time in office. “The only people who are going to benefit are big law firms in Washington, DC, because they are going to go after every single president. They will start with Obama, Fast and Furious, right, where he gives 2,000 weapons to cartel members,” Eric Trump mused. By mounting the presidential immunity challenge, the elder Trump managed to delay the 2020 election subversion trial, which was supposed to commence on March 4. Last Thursday, the Supreme Court heard a landmark case in which former President Donald Trump, 77, claimed that presidents enjoy absolute immunity for their official actions, and therefore the courts should toss out his four-count 2020 election indictment.

US Marshal among 4 law enforcement officers killed in shooting near Charlotte — one suspect dead, 2 others detained

This response was designed to ensure that the found substance was not a chemical or radiological material that threatened the security of the White House. As such, the substance was field tested and preliminarily determined to not be a hazardous compound. Per tradition at any White House Correspondents' Dinner, the president was also the butt of several jokes. Jost focused mostly on Joe Biden's age, including claims that the Commander-in-Chief has grown senile in his golden years. Thought he faced a tough crowed at times, Jost also won laughs towards the end of his speech when he quipped that Johansson would individually greet every person at the dinner after the ceremony. He even dragged Robert F. Kennedy Jr. into the mix, tying the independent presidential candidate’s anti-vaccine stance to his 2024 campaign.

White House Cocaine Probe Ends, Wild Speculation Doesn't - U.S. News & World Report

White House Cocaine Probe Ends, Wild Speculation Doesn't.

Posted: Thu, 13 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Substance found in White House confirmed to be cocaine

The spokesman, Anthony Guglielmi, also said that the agency had confirmed that the white, powdery substance found by an officer was cocaine, backing up the results of an early test by the Washington fire department. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., sent a letter Wednesday asking Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to release information about where the cocaine was found. He also asked half a dozen questions about access to the White House, other instances of illegal drugs' being found in the complex and security procedures, requesting answers by July 14. Jean-Pierre reiterated that the cocaine was found in a heavily traveled area that visitors often transit and noted that staff-sponsored tours were held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The blurry timeline and the number of people who walk through the area where the cocaine was found could make it difficult to determine who was responsible, an official familiar with the investigation said. WASHINGTON — A formal lab test of the white substance found at the White House on Sunday has come back positive for cocaine, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said Wednesday.

Office of Communication and Media Relations

Asked about the incident Wednesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre emphasized that the investigation is under the Secret Service's purview and said she is "confident" they will get to the bottom of the situation. CNN first reported that the investigation had concluded without finding a suspect. He, first lady Dr. Jill Biden and members of their family departed for Camp David on Friday.

"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 agency said. "At this time, the Secret Service's investigation is closed due to a lack of physical evidence." The Secret Service is not ruling out any White House personnel, guests or visitors.

Steve Doocy Tells His Fox & Friends Colleagues the Economy Is Strong Under Biden: ‘A Lot of the Numbers Are Good’

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to answer when she was asked at Wednesday's briefing which of the two West Wing entrances was involved, saying she would let the Secret Service address that. The U.S. Secret Service takes its mission to protect U.S. leaders, facilities, and events seriously and we are constantly adapting to meet the needs of the current and future security environment. The substance was located inside a receptacle used to temporarily store electronic and personal devices prior to entering the West Wing.

Secret Service releases photos of cocaine found in White House locker - wpde.com

Secret Service releases photos of cocaine found in White House locker.

Posted: Tue, 14 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Elie Honig Baffled by Lack of Ruling on Trump Gag Order: ‘I’m Mystified by This’

News publications like CNN, The Hill, and the AP reported officials were working to identify who was responsible for bringing the substance into the federal building. According to the AP, Secret Service agents discovered the substance while doing a routine security scan of the building. NBC reported the drug was in a small, zippered bag, and that it was unclear how long it had been in the White House. We found social media posts that claimed the cocaine was found in various places around the White House, such as the above-displayed Facebook post that claimed it was found in an area where President Biden often worked.

The saga over the cocaine began just before the Fourth of July, when the White House was temporarily closed after an "unknown item" was discovered by Secret Service officers on July 2. A preliminary test conducted by the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department soon after the substance was found indicated it was cocaine. The agency, along with the FBI, tested the packet to determine it was cocaine and looked for any fingerprints or DNA evidence. Video footage of the area where the baggie was found also provided no evidence to narrow the possible suspects beyond a list of roughly 500 staff members and visitors who passed through during a weekend earlier this month. A person familiar with the investigation said that the baggie was found near an area where guests are screened for security and leave their phones in small cubbies. The Secret Service would not say where exactly the substance was found in the lobby or whether the agency was working with the White House to review guest logs.

President Biden was briefed on the investigation and said it is “incredibly important” for the Secret Service to determine how it got there. Forensic work on the cocaine bag continued Thursday, though officials are setting low expectations that they will be able to identify who left it. The Situation Room, located in the West Wing, where staffers would also drop their phones before entering, has been undergoing construction work and was not in use at the time the baggie was found, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last week.

Justices on the conservative-led high court appeared deeply skeptical about the claim of absolute presidential immunity, while simultaneously sounding leery about presidents having no immunity. Last July, Secret Service agents discovered a small baggie in a vestibule near the Situation Room and a floor below the Oval Office that they later concluded contained under a gram of cocaine. Eric Trump warned that if the Supreme Court brushes aside presidential immunity, prosecutors could line up a case against President Biden over last summer’s White House cocaine debacle. At the time of publication, there was no credible evidence to link the drug found in the White House to any individual or group, much less the president's son.

That decision could mean relegating the matter back to the lower courts to iron out certain aspects of the case, such as the distinction between private and official actions. Echoing the former president’s legal team, Eric Trump cautioned that without immunity protecting former commanders-in-chief, overzealous prosecutors could have a field day. The Trump scion further cautioned that if his father fails to win his bid for absolute immunity then the floodgates could be open to a flurry of prosecutions against other presidents. Later, in an email to Snopes, he confirmed the cocaine wasn't found in a library and was instead found "in an area of the West Wing." Comer, a Kentucky Republican, later said in a statement that the Secret Service needs to reassess its security operations to ensure illegal substances do not enter the White House. President Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden were not at the White House when the cocaine was found, as they spent the weekend at Camp David before returning for Fourth of July festivities.

People familiar with the investigation say that the area is frequented so often by so many groups of people that it may be hard to find the person who left the baggie. The unusual breach of White House security was found July 2 when a uniformed Secret Service officer spotted a small plastic baggie in a storage cubby at the West Executive Avenue entrance on the ground level. Visitors, contractors, military personnel and staff members use the storage cubbies to drop off electronic devices and personal items not permitted in some areas of the West Wing. The vestibule is near the Situation Room, which is out of service for renovations; an alternative secure meeting room is being used for classified briefings during construction. It was found in a zip-close bag near an entrance where visitors taking tours are directed to leave their phones, the official said. The cocaine, contained in a small Ziploc bag, was found in a cubby used by visitors to store cellphones and other personal items before entering the West Wing.