Alejandro Mayorkas, the Secretary of Homeland Security, recently appeared on CNN to address the growing concern over the mysterious drone sightings across New Jersey, New York, Maryland, and near Washington, D.C. His comments, however, were a striking display of government ineffectiveness. When Wolf Blitzer pressed him on what Americans should make of the sightings, Mayorkas repeated the same dismissive response: “We have not seen anything unusual. We know of no threat or of any nefarious activity.” Rather than addressing the concerns with urgency, Mayorkas suggested that many sightings were “mistaken identity,” implying that people were confusing drones with small aircraft, and blamed multiple reports of the same drone for inflating the problem.
Mayorkas seemed focused on downplaying the situation and ignoring legitimate concerns of the public. He mentioned that experts have been in touch with the New Jersey State Police “every day,” and boasted of deploying “state-of-the-art technology” to confirm drone activity. Yet he admitted, “That's not to say that there aren't drones, you know, flying in the air, but we have no concern at this point with respect to a threat or any nefarious activity.”
Mayorkas continued, “The reality is you can have a 15-year-old kid who buys a drone off the shelf and puts it up in the sky. We have not seen drones turn their lights off in the dark. We have not seen drones penetrate restricted airspace. Those are two indicia that would give us a cause for concern.”
Does anyone believe this is caused by some kid with a store-bought drone? Mayorkas himself doesn’t seem to have a clue, either; he’s just trying to convince the public that nothing sinister is going on. But, clearly, they don’t know one way or the other, and if the government cannot determine what is flying above some of the nation’s most densely populated and strategically important areas, how can they claim there’s no threat?
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Mayorkas also dismissed calls for action, particularly President-elect Donald Trump’s suggestion to shoot the drones down or release more information. He reiterated, “We haven’t seen anything unusual.”
Really? The fact we’re even talking about this tells us what’s happening is unusual, and the lack of response to this is eerily reminiscent of the Biden administration letting a Chinese spy balloon surveil U.S. military installations last year. Heck, they likely wouldn't have told the public about it, except that civilians had discovered the spy balloon, prompting widespread media coverage. The balloon was able to acquire and transmit intelligence to Beijing in real time. Virtually nothing the White House claimed about the incident made any sense, and the Biden administration tried to deflect criticism by claiming that a similar incident occurred under Trump, but it quickly became clear that this was a lie.
When asked if the Department of Homeland Security had the authority to shoot down drones, Mayorkas admitted, “Our authorities are very limited,” and acknowledged that Congress has been petitioned for expanded powers to address drone activity. Does that make you feel safe?
The lack of a decisive response was further highlighted by comments from Republican Congressman Jeff Van Drew, which Blitzer played a clip of during the interview. Van Drew accused the government of treating the public “like we’re stupid,” and pointed out that authorities have not shot down or analyzed any drones, leaving Americans uninformed. Instead of directly addressing this, Mayorkas defended the “experts,” claiming, “These are individuals who dedicate their careers to the safety and security of the United States of America.” So how does this jibe with lack of action by the Biden administration?
Mayorkas’ claim that the drones pose no threat defies logic. When Blitzer highlighted the weaponization of drones in Ukraine and the Middle East, Mayorkas reluctantly acknowledged, “Technology has advanced in the realm of drones. They can fly farther. They can fly faster. They can carry heavier payloads,” but offered no concrete solutions, instead repeating the need for “expanded authorities.”
NEW: Alejandro Mayorkas says there is nothing they can do about the NJ drones because they don't have the "authority" and suggests people are just mistaking them for drones bought at "convenience stores."
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 13, 2024
Biggest clown in America.
Mayorkas says people might simply be mistaking… pic.twitter.com/Ln0d43yfFL
Americans are justifiably concerned about drone risks, yet Mayorkas’ passive response downplays the threat and provides no clear plan of action. His appearance on CNN revealed a Homeland Security secretary unable or unwilling to act. It’s “Balloon-gate” all over again, and it’s time for the Biden administration to stop making excuses and deliver results. The American people deserve more than vague reassurances, but I don't think we're going to get what we need. Whoever the Biden administration is protecting, it's not American citizens.
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