--- title: Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy Addresses Congress description: Says he's "confident we can...restore the secret service's rightful place as the most respected protection service in the world.” canonical: https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-19T19:51:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T11:33:25.698Z article:section: Politics og:title: Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy Addresses Congress og:description: Says he's "confident we can...restore the secret service's rightful place as the most respected protection service in the world.” og:url: https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5083664a7bd23012/698769a7cd6848ce3a098148/ap421298689927.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Joseph Clancy og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy Addresses Congress twitter:description: Says he's "confident we can...restore the secret service's rightful place as the most respected protection service in the world.” twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5083664a7bd23012/698769a7cd6848ce3a098148/ap421298689927.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Acting Secret Service Director 'Confident' He Can Restore Faith in Agency by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Nov 19, 2014 7:51 PM UTC  Acting Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy testifies on Capitol Hill Acting Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy testifies on Capitol HillSusan Walsh—AP by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Nov 19, 2014 7:51 PM UTC Acting Director of the Secret Service [Joseph Clancy](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/usss-clancy-testimony.pdf) told lawmakers on Wednesday he’s “confident” he can restore the American public’s faith in the agency, in the wake of high-profile security breaches that put the President and First Family in danger. “We are confident we can fulfill our mission with honor, and restore the secret service’s rightful place as the most respected protection service in the world,” Clancy said Wednesday in front of the[ House Judiciary Committee](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/usss-clancy-testimony.pdf). It has been a little over a month since Clancy took the reigns at the Secret Service, after previous director Julia Pierson stepped down after the public found out that an army veteran named Omar Gonzales had been able to reach the East Room of the White House after jumping a fence and running inside. Clancy acknowledged the failures of the agency in recent months, saying he is working to adjust training and morale within an agency he notes is stretched thin. He also [addressed](http://www.c-span.org/video/?322785-1/hearing-secret-service-oversight) the Sept. 19 fence jumping, calling it “devastating.” “What hits me hardest is the range of shortcomings that ultimately allowed Omar Gonzalez to enter the White House practically unencumbered,” he said. The Washington _Post_ [reports ](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/acting-secret-service-director-joseph-clancy-calls-lapses-devastating/2014/11/19/a2ddd480-7001-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef%5Fstory.html)Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who will serve as the next chairman of the House Oversight committee, grilled Clancy on whether or not anyone had been punished for misleading the public on [when the fence jumper was detained ](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-fence-jumper-made-it-far-deeper-into-building-than-previously-known/2014/09/29/02efd53e-47ea-11e4-a046-120a8a855cca%5Fstory.html)in early reports. “We’ve cited at least two, I believe three, incidents when the public was misinformed,” Chaffetz reportedly said. “The Secret Service misled us on purpose.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/"},"headline":"Acting Secret Service Director 'Confident' He Can Restore Faith in Agency","datePublished":"2014-11-19T19:51:22.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:33:25.698Z","description":"Joseph Clancy addressed the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, noting the failures that have led to public mistrust in the agency","url":"https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/","keywords":["Congress","Security","Secret Service"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5083664a7bd23012/698769a7cd6848ce3a098148/ap421298689927.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5083664a7bd23012/698769a7cd6848ce3a098148/ap421298689927.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Joseph Clancy","caption":"Joseph Clancy","creditText":"Susan Walsh—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/congress/","name":"Congress"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3595574/secret-service-director-restore-faith/","name":"Acting Secret Service Director 'Confident' He Can Restore Faith in Agency"}}]}] ```