House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) raised dire alarms over the Chinese surveillance balloon traveling across the country and floated the notion that it may carry something nefarious such as a bioweapon.
Comer decried the lack of knowledge about the composition of the balloon and ripped the Biden administration for exhibiting a lack of transparency, noting that he was unaware of members of Congress being appraised of the situation.
‘WE KNOW THAT IT’S A SURVEILLANCE BALLOON’: PENTAGON DISMISSES CHINA’S EXPLANATION
“My concern is that the federal government obviously doesn’t know what’s in that balloon. Is that bioweapons in that balloon, did that balloon take off from Wuhan? We don’t know anything about that balloon. But the fact that this balloon was slowly making its way to the United States for several days and this administration never alerted anyone about the possibility this balloon coming up is very concerning,” Comer told Fox News.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer speculates about a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that officials say flew over Montana:
“Is that bioweapons in that balloon? Did that balloon take off from Wuhan?” pic.twitter.com/7DLeoamsq1
— The Recount (@therecount) February 3, 2023
Department of Defense spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder declared Friday that the device does not pose a known threat to civilians on the ground.
“We currently assess that the balloon does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground at this time,” Ryder said during a press conference.
Ryder also swatted away China’s claims that the balloon was merely used for “mainly meteorological” purposes and insisted the Pentagon knows it is a “surveillance balloon.” The device has been hovering over U.S. airspace since “a couple days ago,” and the Pentagon first announced the development Thursday when it was near Montana, per the DOD.
“Now, I don’t know about the Intelligence Committee with the Senate or the House. But I can tell you, the overwhelming majority of members of Congress that I’ve spoken to in the last 24 hours had no idea about this. So this administration, again, is the least transparent administration in the history of America,” Comer added.
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A number of members of Congress have seethed at the development and urged the Pentagon to shoot down the device, but defense officials have raised concerns that kinetic action could pose safety risks to people on the ground. The balloon is believed to be about 60,000 feet above the ground and “has the ability to maneuver,” despite claims from Chinese officials that the device merely veered off course, Ryder added.
Comer’s Oversight Committee is conducting a sweeping investigation into President Joe Biden’s classified document debacle. He and his counterpart Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) have also pressed the Biden administration for additional information about the origins of COVID-19.
