Secret Service agents were angered by the White House’s efforts to downplay dog-bite injuries last year from President Biden’s German shepherd, Major, newly released documents show.
Despite Major being involved in previously undisclosed biting incidents eight days in a row, Secret Service leaders also sought to downplay details in official paperwork, according to more than 400 pages of documents obtained by the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch.
“These documents show Major was a dangerous dog and the Biden White House lied about it, placing Secret Service and other White House personnel at needless risk,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “And it seems the Secret Service management seemed more concerned about managing press relations than taking care of its agents. In fact, the agency is still withholding information about this mess!”
The records, released after Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, show that there were more dog bites than the White House acknowledged, both at the executive mansion in Washington and at the Bidens’ home in Wilmington, Delaware.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki described for the public only one dog-bite incident, at a briefing on March 9, 2021.
“The first family’s younger dog, Major, was surprised by an unfamiliar person and reacted in a way that resulted in a minor injury to the individual,” she said.
SEE ALSO: Biden says he’s considering sending U.S. officials to Ukraine
The incident on March 8, 2021 actually was the final in a series of dog bites over eight days, one of them involving an unidentified White House pass holder.
The injured Secret Service agent expressed anger over Ms. Psaki’s characterization of the attack.
“NO I didn’t surprise the dog doing my job by being at [redacted] as the press secretary just said! Now I’m p——-,” the agent told a co-worker in an email.
Another anonymous Secret Service employee said of photos depicting the bite wound that the “injury cannot be described in any other term than ‘severe.’”
Ms. Psaki did not return a request for comment.
The Secret Service has declined to comment.
The publicly acknowledged incident occurred as the agent was in the second-floor White House residential area with first lady Jill Biden.
“Without warning or provocation, Major barked loudly at [the agent] … and charged,” according to the heavily redacted report. “Having no time to seek cover from the attack, [the agent] turned away from the dog as he bit into [redacted] right leg.”
Agent David Cho, who was the president’s chief protective agent at the time, wrote in an email: “Major bit one of the agents this morning. The agent is ok, but does have bruising and a puncture.”
“We have noticed Major getting more aggressive lately,” Mr. Cho wrote. “We have extended the offer of our K9 trainer (RTC Training Facility) to help train Major.”
A Secret Service memo issued a day later stated, “Staff/first family are getting him [Major] a full time trainer to correct his behavior in Wilmington. I will let you know if/when they both come back. … The biting incident is in the news now (Google it). Just another reminder that the press is always looking for a story. Maintain awareness of your conversations and social media presence. We do not want and cannot have a press leak attributed to us.”
An earlier incident, on Feb. 28, 2021, occurred at the Bidens’ Wilmington home just after the president took their older dog, Champ, indoors.
An agent outside observed Major “running at [redacted] full stride from the main driveway,” and the agent “quickly made an effort to seek shelter inside.”
But Major caught up to the agent and bit down on the agent’s left forearm, the records stated. The unidentified agent shook the dog off his arm and again tried to escape harm, but Major bit the agent again on the buttocks.
“Approximately 15 minutes after this attack, POTUS Biden opened the front door to let Major into the residence,” the report stated. The agent, although “shaken by the ordeal,” finished the shift.
A photo in the records shows another agent’s $140 wool overcoat that was ripped by Major on March 6, 2021, at the White House as the president and first lady were returning indoors from the White House tennis pavilion.
“As Major came around the corner, he attacked me unprovoked, tearing the wool overcoat I was wearing that evening,” the agent wrote in an effort to obtain reimbursement for the coat.
“This attack occurred through no fault of my own and I could not avoid this unusual circumstance due to the nature and requirements of my position,” the agent wrote.
Another Secret Service employee responded to the agent, writing, “Please submit with the language that has been approved by [the legal office]. Unless you dispute anything in the verbiage that was presented to you, there shouldn’t be a need to embellish with additional details that aren’t required for approval.”
Another email called the agent’s description “excessively detailed and inappropriate.”
A memo stated that Secret Service officials “explained the delicateness of the situation, in terms of potential damage in the trust of our protectees” to the agent.
The agent withdrew his request for reimbursement, saying the first family should pay for the damage rather than the Secret Service.
“After some deep thought and reflection, I don’t believe the USSS should be responsible for the damage to my coat as the cause was not under their control,” the agent wrote. “To be compensated in this manner would essentially have the cost borne by the tax payer and this would be unjust. The responsibility should lie with the party responsible for the wrong doing (i.e. tort), and that of course would be the dog owner/s.”
The Bidens gave Major to family friends last year. Champ has since died, and the Bidens have a new German shepherd named Commander.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.