Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the drone sightings are still being heavily investigated.
In an interview Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” he denied that the federal government was gaslighting the public or engaging in any kind of cover-up.
“There’s no question that people are seeing drones. And I want to assure the American public that we, in the federal government, have deployed additional resources, personnel, technology, to assist the New Jersey State Police in addressing the drone sightings,” he said.
He said that some of the sightings reported have been drones, but some have also been aircraft and that “duplicative reporting” has been happening. He noted that thousands of drones are flown every day across the United States for various reasons.
When asked whether there were actually any national security concerns, he said the department knows of “no foreign involvement with respect to the sightings in the Northeast.”
“We are vigilant in investigating this matter, the Department of Homeland Security, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the lead,” he said.
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He called on Congress to provide greater resources to address the drone sightings, saying the resources the department has are “limited [and] set to expire.”
“We want state and local authorities to also have the ability to counter drone activity under federal supervision. That is one important element that we have requested, and we’ve heard it echoed by the state and local officials themselves,” he said.
Drones have been spotted flying in states up and down the East Coast, and have prompted lawmakers to call on President Biden to get involved and figure out where they’re coming from.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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