The Biden administration apparently tried to hide a strange Chinese surveillance balloon that allegedly violated American airspace on January 28 until a news story revealed their attempts.
According to Bloomberg News, the Biden administration was “well aware” that the balloon had crossed American airspace on January 28 but chose to remain silent in order to not interfere with Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s travel to China.
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The outlet reported:
US authorities conducted a covert operation to ensure the safe and successful passage of an unidentified object that flew into American airspace on Jan. 28, then re-entered over North Idaho just two days ago. Complete secrecy was necessary for this high-profile operation to be successfully completed.
A high-altitude balloon was observed near Billings, Montana, on Wednesday night, according to the Pentagon, after many days of rumors. The information traveled rapidly and was covered by neighborhood newspaper by Thursday afternoon, demonstrating once again that even top-secret military technology can’t elude a watchful local!
By the time it “become visible in Montana,” according to officials who talked to Bloomberg News, President Joe Biden had already been informed about the balloon, and the White House was “scrambling to decide whether to blast it from the sky” despite being watched for five days.
The Biden administration was compelled to think about the outcomes of its actions as it negotiated politically difficult seas over a surveillance balloon flying close to Montana’s Malmstrom Air Force Base, which, according to Bloomberg News, is home to intercontinental ballistic missile silos.
Republicans tried to outmaneuver each other by adopting a tough posture on China as the 2024 elections drew closer, thus prudence ruled in the Biden Administration.
According to Bloomberg News, Biden “argued for shooting the object down, but was urged against doing so by his most senior military advisers, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley — who reportedly “insisted that such a move would put civilians at risk.”
“For now, the White House opted not to inform the American public. Events, however, soon forced Biden’s hand,” The Billings Gazette released a picture of the balloon in a local news item, which was cited by the publication.
“The pace of discussions in the White House quickened,” Bloomberg News reported. “In a call starting at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday, the administration finally went public.”
The Pentagon said at a briefing that they had considered shooting down an unidentified balloon that was flying over isolated areas of Montana, but finally decided against it “just couldn’t buy down the risk enough to feel comfortable recommending shooting it down yesterday.”
United States Secretary of State Blinken abruptly canceled his scheduled travel to China on Friday morning after a week-long delay.
According to Bloomberg News, the administration debated whether Blinken should do so for “hours,” and “finally felt they had no choice.” In order to “signal” that the U.S. had no wish to aggravate the situation, authorities informed the outlet that it was just postponed, not cancelled.
People felt that the journey was not worthwhile because “potential domestic political costs of going, given that Blinken’s talks in China were not expected to yield much in the first place.”
Additionally, the source reported “Biden’s team worried that the incident would serve as more fodder for Republicans who believed the administration is weak on China, especially if the balloon crashed and hurt someone while Blinken was in Beijing.”
Our administration had to update one of Washington’s most powerful cliques after their formal launch on the market. The “Gang of Eight,” which consists of influential members of the House and Senate as well as the chairs of both intelligence committees, was informed by Bloomberg News shortly after it became public.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, has obliquely criticized the administration’s delay. “There’s no way the CCP would allow a balloon like this to fly over the Chinese heartland,” he tweeted Friday. “China’s aggressive behavior is a violation of international norms and shows a reckless disregard for the safety of American citizens.”
The Pentagon said on Saturday afternoon that its personnel had successfully stopped a balloon from traveling across the Atlantic before it reached the coast of South Carolina.
President Biden ordered the Pentagon on Wednesday to stop using any balloon that presented a safety concern.
That argument was reaffirmed in a statement issued by Austin.
“On Wednesday, President Biden gave his authorization to take down the surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to American lives under the balloon’s path. After careful analysis, U.S. military commanders had determined downing the balloon while over land posed an undue risk to people across a wide area due to the size and altitude of the balloon and its surveillance payload,” Austin said in the statement.
Rep. Ryan Zinke argued vehemently for the government to act swiftly to defend his native state of Montana by shooting down an errant balloon that was circling above.
“I would have volunteered to be there and pull the trigger,” He revealed this in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News on Friday. “I can tell you your chances of doing harm to humans is low. And you know what, and Montanans would understand that.”
American security and servicemember preparedness were cited as crucial national concerns on Saturday by House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-AL). He reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that Congress and the nation provide our military members with the best possible assistance.
By taking down the surveillance balloon sent by the CCP, our heroic military personnel have successfully completed an important job to defend our country. Despite this victory, I continue to voice serious concerns about the Biden administration’s approval of its travel throughout America.
The Biden administration learned that a Chinese Communist Party-controlled balloon was flying over American territory on January 28 and wisely kept this significant national security breach a secret until it was discovered by people in Montana one week later. Their efforts to hide this failure suggest an intention to keep Congress and the general public unaware of the circumstances surrounding its presence on American air space at large.
He added, “Now, the White House must provide answers about why they decided to allow a CCP spy balloon to cross the United States and what damage to our national security occurred from this decision. The United States must project strength to deter China — this failure is another example of weakness by the Biden administration.”
