Secret Service Director Julia Pierson is sworn in before testifying during the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on "White House Perimeter Breach: New Concerns about the Secret Service" on Sept. 30, 2014.Bill Clark—CQ-Roll Call
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday that Secret Service Director Julia Pierson should resign, a sharp rebuke from one of the top Democrats in Congress after a White House fence jumper made it inside the President’s home last month.
“If Mr. Cummings thinks that she should go, I subscribe to his recommendation,” Pelosi said, referring to Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the top Democrat on a House committee investigating the security breach. “I am subscribing to his superior judgment and knowledge on the subject. But I’m also further saying that this is more than one person because there were problems before she went there.”
“Her leaving doesn’t end the need for us to know a lot more about what is happening,” Pelosi added. “There has to be an independent investigation.”
Pelosi’s office later clarified that she stopped short of calling outright for Pierson’s resignation.
Following a brutal congressional hearing on Tuesday, Pierson held a closed-door session with members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to discuss the Sept. 19 incident, in which officials say Iraq war veteran Omar Gonzalez made it all the way to the East Room before his arrest. The confidential meeting did little to assuage Cummings’ doubts in Pierson’s leadership abilities, however, and he told radio and television broadcasters on Wednesday morning that Pierson should go.
“I have come to the conclusion that my confidence and my trust in this director, Ms. Pierson, has eroded and I do not feel comfortable with her in that position,” Cummings said on MSNBC.
“I think this lady has to go,” he reportedly said during a radio interview on NewsOneNow. “The president is not well-served.”
A Cummings aide later added to those comments, saying that the Congressman believes Pierson should go if she can’t “restore the public’s trust” and address the cultural issues within the Secret Service agency. Pelosi’s office said the Minority Leader agrees with that sentiment.
Pierson said Tuesday that she takes full responsibility for the White House breach and that it won’t happen again. She also pledged a “complete and thorough” internal investigation and policy review.
PHOTOS: Go Behind the Scenes with Joe Clancy, the New Director of the Secret Service
Clancy, left, crosses Pennsylvania Avenue with President Barack Obama, and Obama's aide Reggie Love, rear, while walking back to the White House in Washington D.C., on March 1, 2010. Charles Dharapak—APClancy holds the door for Barack Obama as the President departs Andrews Air Force Base in Md. on Feb. 12, 2009. Brooks Kraft—CorbisPresident Barack Obama greets supporters at the Fort Meyers airport in Florida, as Clancy stands watch behind the President's left shoulder, Feb. 10, 2009. Brooks Kraft—CorbisBlink and you might miss him, but here's Clancy again, flanking President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama as they wave to crowds along the inaugural parade route in Washington D.C. on Jan. 20, 2009. Charles Dharapak—APClancy is seen speaking over the radio into his palm mic as he glances in the camera's direction as President Barack Obama and his family walk back to the White House after attending St. John's Episcopal Church in Washington D.C. on Oct. 11, 2009.Susan Walsh—APClancy braves the rain as umbrella-carrying President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron walk from Marine One in Toronto, after their flight from the G8 Summit to the G20 Summit on June 26, 2010. Jason Reed—ReutersClancy blends in on stage as Obama speaks at the Arizona State University commencement ceremony at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz. on May 13, 2009.Brooks Kraft—CorbisSolar panels make good camouflage as Clancy and another Secret Service agent accompany the President and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, on May 27, 2009.Brooks Kraft—CorbisPresident Barack Obama jogs up the steps to speak at a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee and Sen. Barbara Boxer, with Clancy watching closely from the wings, at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, April 19, 2010.Alex Brandon—APEyeing those extended arms warily, Clancy keeps hold on President Barack Obama as he shakes hands with people outside of the Top Pot Doughnuts shop in Seattle on Oct. 21, 2010.Jim Watson—AFP/Getty ImagesClancy in the foreground, as Obama is reflected in a garage window in a backyard at the Weithman family home on Aug 18, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio.Mike Munden—Getty ImagesClancy scans the crowd seated just behind Obama and former President Bill Clinton as the two talk at a memorial service for Sen. Robert Byrd on July 2, 2010, at the Capitol in Charleston, WV.Charles Dharapak—APPresident Barack Obama holds hands with daughter Sasha as they walk away from Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington D.C. after arriving home from their vacation in Hawaii, with Clancy facing outward nearby, on Jan. 4, 2010. Lawrence Jackson—The White HouseWith hands folded, Clancy watches the press watching President Barack Obama wave as he arrives at the White House in Washington D.C. on Oct. 15, 2010.Nicholas Kamm—AFP/Getty ImagesPresident Barack Obama meets with NCTC Director Michael Leiter, center right, leadership and analysts in the Secure Video Teleconference Room at the National Counterterrorism Center in McLean, Va, on Oct. 6, 2009. Samantha Appleton—The White HouseNational Security Advisor General James Jones, left, and Clancy coordinate arrival details by telephone for President Barack Obama's visit to Baghdad on April 7, 2009. Pete Souza—The White HouseA flood of bright lights fall on Clancy and other agents as the President waves to press watching the arrival of Air Force One in Springfield, Ill. on Feb. 12, 2009.Brooks Kraft—CorbisClancy has President Barack Obama's back during a frenzied meet-and-greet with the audience after speaking about health care reform at the Patriot Center at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. on March 19, 2010. Charles Dharapak—APClancy stands watch as the President boards Air Force One at Buckley Air Force Base in Denver, Colo., en route to Las Vegas, Nev. on Feb. 18, 2010.Pete Souza—The White House
