making recommendations to the secretary about who would be a good candidate to lead the united states secret service. they will consider individuals from outside that agency and offer recommendations to the secretary about whether or not a review of broader issues concerning the secret service is necessary. we are confident and the president is confident that the department of homeland security will take a hard look at this situation. that we'll assemble a panel of outside experts who will take a hard look at this situation and develop a set of recommendations that will ensure that the united states secret service can meet the high standard they set for themselves. >> does the president believe more people besides the director need to go? >> the president believes an independent panel should review the results of this assessment as being conducted by the deputy secretary of homeland security to determine which steps are appropriate moving forward. >> does the president or white house generally believe any shortfalls or any problems at the secret service are related to shortfalls that are connected t

secret service just resigned. we've now just received a statement by secretary jonathan. today julia pierson the director of the united states secret service, offered her resignation and i accept it, he writes. i salute her 30 years of distinguished service to the secret service and the nation. mike emanuel with pus. that didn't take long. >> no, shep. you got a sense when you heard bipartisan calls for her to go as early as last night and followed up this morning and then some other leading lawmakers expected to examine out. we expected chuck schumer to come out at the top of the neck hour. south carolina's lindsey graham to call for her resignation and realized she was losing confidence of a lot of key people here in washington. we don't know at this point about whether there are conversations with the president directly or with senior members at the white house, but at that point when you're a washington official and you hear calls for you to go, and there's a big fix ahead of the agency you're leading, quite often the thing to do is turn in your resignation and then if the president or the secretary of homeland security

like that occur, that there would be a pretty open channel of communication between the united states secret service, the department of homeland security and ultimately the white house. >> does he want -- does the president want to see the channels of communication to be more open, more transparent? does the white house feel like it's kept in the dark a little bit too much by the secret service in terms of these problems that occur from time to time? >> well, the -- well, i think this will be part of some of the things that this independent panel will consider. what is the appropriate level of secret service response to incidents like this when they crop up. and that, obviously, would involve communicating reforms or even information where necessary to senior members of the department of homeland security and again, ultimately in some occasions, to the white house. >> and does the president think that julia pierson let him down? >> well, like i said, the president took time out of his day this afternoon to call director pierson to thank her for her service to the agency and to the country. and the p

that he had accepted this afternoon the resignation of julie pearson, director of the united states secret service. before we get to your questions, let me just tell you this afternoon the president had the opportunity to telephone director pearson. to express his appreciation for her service to the agency and to the country. she dedicated more than 30 years of her life to the united states secret service and to the important work they do over there. as i mentioned yesterday, she spent several hours in front of the camera yesterday answering difficult questions from members of congress. in the context of that interaction she took responsibility for the shortcomings of the agency that she led and she took responsibility for fixing them. that, quite simply, is a testament to her professionalism and her character. so, with that, jim, why don't you get us started on questions today. >> thanks, josh. in that phone call, had she already submitted her resignation or did the president ask for it? >> in the meeting the director of homeland security met with director pearson and accepted her resignation at

witnesses, the honorable julia pearson is the director of the united states secret service. director is the former director of the united states secret service, and currently up partner at command consulting group. is theorable todd keele former assistant secretary for infrastructure protection at the united states department of homeland security and currently a senior advisor to touchtone page, pursuant to the committee rules i when asked that you please all rise and raise your right hand to take the oath. do you solemnly swear or affirm the testimony you are about to get will be the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth? please be seated. but the record reflect all witnesses answered in the affirmative. in order to allow a sufficient time for discussions and questions, please limit your testimony to five minutes. the entire opening statement will be made a permanent part of the record. with that, director pearson is recognized. >> good morning chairman isaf, ranking member cummings and distinguished members of the committee. i'm here to address the concern we all sha

in her testimony that in the immediate aftermath of the incident on september 19, the united states secret service put in place additional security precautions to bolster security at the united states so there's already changes that have been made. the president continues to have full confidence that our highly skilled and highly trained and good at what they do. these individuals also take very seriously their responsibility to protect the president and the white house. the third thing is that the president has -- is very appreciative that somebody with a resume and the skills are taking responsibility for leading the secret service are in the interim. a. he's taken a leave of absence to reenter the government service. that is i think a demonstration of the sacrifice that he's making principally because of the loyalty that he feels to this organization and agency that he served for so long. >> [inaudible] >> absolutely. as the acting director mr. clancy will have the responsibility for leading the organization. the president is grateful that he's taken on that responsibility. >> on the dallas ebo

now welcome our panel of witnesses, the honorable julia pearson is the director of the united states secret service. the director is the former director of the united states secret service, and currently up partner at command consulting group. the honorable todd keele is the former assistant secretary for infrastructure protection at the united states department of homeland security and currently a senior advisor to touchtone page, pursuant to the committee rules i when asked that you please all rise and raise your right hand to take the oath. do you solemnly swear or affirm the testimony you are about to get will be the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth? please be seated. but the record reflect all witnesses answered in the affirmative. in order to allow a sufficient time for discussions and questions, please limit your testimony to five minutes. the entire opening statement will be made a permanent part of the record. with that, director pearson is recognized. >> good morning chairman isaf, ranking member cummings and distinguished members of the committee. i'm here to address the conc

the united states secret service. ♪ >> you can watch "reel america" every weekend on c-span 3.w our archive of programs online at www.c-span.org. search for "reel america." >> 2015 student cam competition is underway. this competition for middle and high school students will award 150 prizes totaling $100,000. .reate a 5-7 minute documentary videos need to include c-span programming, show varying points of view, and must be submitted by january 20. .org for morecam information. today at 6:00, we explore an exhibit of the library of commerce -- congress marking the anniversary of the pan am -- panama canal opening. that is on american artifacts, american history tvs weekly program that takes viewers into archives, museums, and historic sites around the country. >> monday night, jeremy grant talks about ways to increase data protection with alternatives to passwords and basic security. >> the government is not looking to endorse any particular solution. be privacyo enhancing, it easy to use, and interoperable. pilots weng at the have, we have some that are looking at smartphone-b

a month before after my appointment to the united states secret service, i reported to the treasury buildingn washington. i had butterflies in my stomach. walter holt took me through the exhibit room in the treasury building. there i had a quick look at the work of the other treasury enforcement agencies. i knew that the treasury's unit investigated tax frauds and i discovered that the treasury also fights crime fronts. like the bureau of narcotics, with a captured opium pipes and marijuana cigarettes and heroin and other drugs. dirtiest racket in the world, bar none. the alcohol tax unit like most of the others never gets into the headlines much, but its agents hunt down bootleggers and keep a lot of poisonous liquor out of circulation. they have another job, too. enforcing the national firearms registration act. customs bureau which nabs smugglers who pull all kind of tricks to sneak contraband into the country. these crooks use everything from kids' plays to things to hide their goods. but the customs men know all the tricks. then there is the coast guard. that is part of the treasury, to

major news about the agency whose job it is to protect the president of the united states. secret service director julie pierson has resigned. >> new leadership of that agency was required. >> pireserson's departure stems from a series of blunders by the secret service. gonzalez appeared in court for the first time this afternoon. >> that is where we join scott thuman. what was the outcome? >> let's just note that pierson's resignation, incredibly fast. the calls were getting loud very quickly. today in court, omar gonzalez pled not guilty. he waved it attention hearing, meaning he will be held until trial. the biggest moment, the strangest moment with his attorney arguing he should not have to undergo a mental health evaluation and telling the court to back off. attorneysistening as argued over the court's push for a mental health screening, omar gonzalez said almost nothing, his lawyer insisting the accused white house intruder and war veteran is quote, doing just fine, and the judge has no right to order one. >> it the screening is done, we would like to have a screening done by our ex

everyone here at the white house does have full confidence in the men and women of the united states secret service. >> reporter: pierson, the first woman to head the secret service, took over just 18 months ago, after a scandal involving agents and prostitutes on a presidential trip to colombia. in an interview with bloomberg news today, pierson said, "i can be pretty stoic about it, but not really. it's painful to leave as the agency is reeling from a significant security breech." but critics in congress say that she was unable to change the culture of the organization. democrat elijah cummings. >> i believe that there are other people that probably need to go, too. i beg those people in the secret service who do not want to be about the business of restoring their impeccable reputation as it was before to leave. >> reporter: white house intruder omar gonzalez pleaded not guilty today in federal court. and, scott, even though pierson has resigned, the department of homeland security has still ordered an independent review of the secret service, something members of congress demanded. >> pelley: b

we begin tonight with a series of frankly shocking reports involving the united states secret service. most of what you've heard, reports of an armed fence jump who are made it into the white house, news that another man armed with a checkered past, armed and with a checkered past, joined the president on an elevator, came from stories broken by one reporter, carol loennig of "the washington post." but this is far from the first time carol has uncovered cracks within an institution we've always instinctively trusted. her reports ultimately led to this. >> over the last several days, we've seen recent and accumulating reports raising questions about the performance of the agency. and the president concluded that new leadership of that agency was required. gwen: are we talking dysfunction here? >> i think we are. i think as elijah cummings said at the hearing, it's got to be a problem for the director if people are trusting lawmakers and the media with their concerns about their agency before they're telling their boss. and we've seen this all come to pass in very dramatic fashion in th

paul tweets, public confidence in the united states secret service is almost irrelevant.ion that matters belongs to potus. >> it will be interesting to see the new director take over. >>> we did get extra special tweets about my pen and my tie, right? >> we did. somebody says you need to get a new neck tie knot. john points out you should use the quad color pen especially on throw back thursday. >> look at this. straight from my trapper keeper. >>> coming up next on "way too early," a look at the stories we'll be covering in the day ahead. "morning joe" is just moments away, live from d.c., back in a moment. i know... this third shift is rough... it's just a few more weeks max! what are you doing up? it's late. i just wanted to have breakast wih you. when we're having this much fun, why quit? and bounty has no quit in it either. it's 2x more absorbent than the leading ordinary brand, and then stays strong, so you can use less. watch how one sheet of bounty keeps working, while their two sheets just quit. bounty. the no-quit picker-upper. what's the best way to tackle foot

united states. could you comment? >> i'm sorry you do not get but since for me. i've spent a career in the united states secret service for taking presidents, their families, and the white house complex in addition to our other missions. there is nothing more sacred any secret service agent, uniformed division officer, or administrative technical rational employee than our response validity for mission success. we do not take it lightly. we do it under difficult and challenging conditions. there's not a lot we can do in managing individuals mental illness who do not commit a put themselves in a position where the secret service can take further actions against them. we are limited by the system that we have to work within, the laws of our country. do not doubtn, i for a minute your sincerity. what i said is i do not sense any sense of outrage about what happened. we are all outrage within the secret service and how this incident came to pass. that is why i have asked for a full we are review. it is obvious, it is obvious that mistakes were made. it is self-evident that mistakes were made. we must identify what the fac

today, the director of the united states secret service came to the house committee to defend what is increasingly em battled inc.en sill. first, there is the white house fence jumper from 11 days ago who we had been told was detained inside the front doors of the north portico of the white house itself but who, we learned yesterday, ran through first floor of the white house and was tackled. today, we learned, always by happenstance, who just happened to be quince dentally in the house and leaving for the night when he saw the intruder running by. >> it's clear that our security plan was not properly executed. this is unacceptable and i take full responsibility and i will make sure that it does not happen again. >> i have very little time, and i'm not -- the american people want to know if there is a president safe. >> so you just let it linger out there that there was no weapon? it was wrong. that was inaccurate. >> that a higher fence be built. one that, for example, could curve, you know, still be historic, that wrought iron fence, but with the curves going outward so you'd damage

you oversight agencies including the united states secret service.d be current director lose her job because a man jumped the fence at the white house and made it into the building before he was stopped? mark, that the united states government does not have enough willingness to dismiss people. you remember the crash. the head of boeing did not resign. in this culture, you have guys going after prostitutes, people being found facedown in a hotel. that is completely unacceptable. the uniformed service is the step system -- the stepchildren of the agent community. i think she will have a lot of explaining to do because this is completely unacceptable and unprofessional. >> we are hearing reports that new york's senior senator chuck schumer will call for her to step down later today. joining frank keating, us from washington, always a privilege to have you on the broadcast. thank you for your time. >> thank you. handshake. million why the united states is paying brazil hundreds of millions of dollars over cotton. alan pearson joins us when we continue i

i just love the idea of the united states secret service being represented so brilliantly. >>> and thissecurity breakdown is really a much bigger deal, and to allow the residence of office of the president of the united states to be this vulnerable should result in a complete and utter management house cleaning. and homeland security as well as the secret service. at least six secret service safeguards were breached allowing the intruder to get to the white house east room among the things we've learned about this president, is he first denies problems and challenges and then stonewalls question of competency or integrity and acts only when corralled and i mean absolutely corralled by circumstance. in this instance at least, president obama denial, stonewalling and refusal to hold those who failed in duty puts him and his family at unacceptable risk. the president's duty is clear and he must act in his personal interests and that of the nation. the quotation of the evening if i may from the 40th president of the united states, ronald reagan who said -- or on occasion heard, we're coming

true that the president and everyone here has full confidence in the men and women of the united states secrete service. >> for more on the challenges of covering the president i drop by the white house. >> when an intruder hopped the fence behind me and the whole secret service mess erupted you kept asking if the president had full confidence is that a bit of a dance? >> i was stunned that he appeared to be not that stunned by the whole thing. >> you said where is the outrage. >> the third day after she re-si re-signed tnchts white house said well we're investigating this. something horrible could have happened. now i understand they're also doing a dance we should respect which is they're trying to keep morale in the secret service up because they're getting pounded and the last thing you want to do is attack an agency protecting the president or trying to. it's delicate. >> did this hit home not only because the president's life jeopardized but you work here and see these agents every day. >> i do and i know and respect them and most of the agents and officers i know are out standing law enforcement

just when you thought it couldn't get worse for united states secret service, another scandal hits. a former aid on mitt romney's presidential campaign is saying that his secret service campaign leaked president's schedule to ryan's staffers back in 2012, during the campaign. sean mccoy published on the ground in a key swing state to coordinate security ahead of several cam feign stops by the president. in one particular incident, the secret service agent who had a number of drinks during the meeting began providing details of president obama's schedule. including times and dates of the president's events. >>> congressman, we all know if you've got a guy scheduling, you've got his whole plan figuring out. it's also a security issue. we're not supposed to know where the president is going before they want us to know. what do you think of a secret service agent getting a little tipsy or even drunk? >> what was he doing at a bar? what was he doing drinking to begin with, much less running his mouth. >>> i think that's why speaker boehner and chairman mccawl are right for the entire secr

>> it is true that the president and the white house does have full confidence in the united states secret service. these are highly trained commandos go professionals who everyday get out of bed prepared to put their life on the line at a moments notice to protect the white house and the president and the president is appreciative of their work in service to the country. >> in the speech today you mentioned jay johnson. he gave a speech before all this happened in canada talking about the terror threat. he mentioned today with jay johnson and said today it's different than a wife and 2001, more centralized, more complex. not only their core al qaeda in afghanistan and pakistan, the arabian peninsula and you listed all the affiliates that could still be a threat. or when he mentioned that there is for al qaeda in afghanistan and pakistan, is the administration said elaine got more al qaeda is no longer decimated, the air part of this threat matrix? we stand by what is demonstrably true. i think for al qaeda, along the border region between afghanistan and pakistan has been decimated and destroyed

the washington post" reported last night that in addition to that, those punishments for united states secret service employees, that there was also, at the time, the white house knew about the allegation that a prostitute had stayed in a white house aide's room overnight. this was a volunteer who was 25 at the time. the white house says this is old news, this had already been reported and it's been discussed and the young man has been exonerated, that he did nothing wrong. we're still talking about it today, especially because of so many bad headlines for the secret service in recent weeks. >> the white house gave this statement. quote, as a bipartisan senate investigation found, allegations that changes were made because they were embarrassing could not be substantiated. so is this the end of everything? >> i don't think so. i think that there's a lot of debate about the secret service generally because of all of these allegations about what the role of secret service should be, whether it should be moved to another agency. there's a new director. what kind of changes and reforms can they make? it'

united states informed? >> i would assume that the president of the united states is informed. i don't know. >> you are the head of the secret service explain to me why you would not know that. >> your question was objective as to whether or not i would know. >> do you brief the president or no? >> if your question is when there are incidents that involve the president of the united states or the first family in security concerns, yes. >> then you do brief the president. >> yes. >> do you brief the president if there has been improvement or breach -- has been a premature breach at the white house echo >> i have conversations with the president. ifdo you brief the president his own personal security has in any way been jeopardized? >> i have confidential conversations with the president. those would be the topic that we would cover in addition to other things. >> what percentage of the time do you inform the president whether his personal security has been breached? i would say in proximity to the incident. >> i asked you what percentage of the time do you inform the president if his personal security is in any way, shape, or form be

and recently revealed and after a hearing that was full of outrage the director of the united states secret service has resigned. the department of homeland security with the complete backing of the president has entered in a wide ranging critical assessment of how the secret service protects the president and his family. julie pierson tendered her resignation to jay johnson and to president obama. after an 18-month tenure that was born itself in the wake of a secret sex scandal she was brought in to clean up. her tenure began after one of the major incidents now under close scrutiny, the 2011 of the white house iks tear your, but she was at the helm of two key security related incidents including the white house fence jumper, and while the white house press secretary relayed president obama's gratitude for pierson's years of service, the president believes her resignation is necessary. >> over the last several days we've seen recent and accumulating reports raising questions about the agency and the president concluded that new leadership was required. >> today joseph clancy was named as the inter

the director of the united states secret service is out.washington julia pierson submitted her resignation to the secretary of homeland security. >> director pierson offered her resignation because she believed it was in the best interest of the agency. the secretary agreed with that assessment. the president did as well. over the last several days we've seen recent and accumulating reports raising questions about the performance of the agency. and the president concluded that new leadership of that agency was required. >> now, while the white house attempts to move beyond the scandals that have rocked the secret service, controversy continues to engulf the president. here's why, because we have a commander in chief who has fumbled america's response on isis. that poses the greatest threat to our homeland since 9/11. and he did so because he continues to underestimate the rise of radical islam not only around the globe but right here at home even in america's heart land. he can't even say what's happened in oklahoma is an act of terror. whe

secret service on these several occasions. i really do. so whash we going to do -- and look. this whole thing is the united states secret service versus one mentally challenged man. , one man with meantal illness, that you know had mental illness. this is the secret service against one individual with rk and you lost. you hi got to the green room in the white house. what happened if you have a sophisticated organization with an attempt and resources going up against the secret service? what happens then? >> you can watch the hire hearing on our companion network, c-span 2 or c-span.org. c-span's 2014 coverage continues. we'll have live coverage of the texas governor's debate. democrat wendy davis facing republican greg abottle. we spoke to a reporter about the ace. >> with governor rick perry stepping down, it is an open seat in texas. wendy davis, democrat and republican greg abbott, the texas attorney general. we have the senior political writer of the dallas morning news with us. >> good to be here. >> what do the polls tell you? >> the polls are all over the place. the republican is ahead by double digits, ma

you have on the gender aspect of this, either as it relate to the former now head of the united states secret servicer the issue that i have raised. >> well, i think that there will be some, as in almost every situation, who will look at the story about the secret service agent being overpowered, and saying well women should not become secret service agents. and to that i say bunk. there are women who are fully capable of working in that arena, and have been doing so ever single day. and a man could have been overrun. it is important, i think, and i want to make sure i say this, breaches don't -- don't equate to betrayal. and so we have had these breaches. we had a situation where a secret service agent was not able to stop someone. >> right. >> but ladies and gentlemen, look, with all of the agents -- i've been to the white house many, many times. there are agents everywhere. the system needs to be reevaluated and i guess that's what's going to happen now. >> don't forget one of the heroes of the reagan assassination attempt was one of the first female agents who joined the service. so there has bee

everyone here at the white house does have full confidence in the men and women of the united states secret serviceor more on the challenges of covering the president, i dropped by the white house. >> ed henry, thanks for having me. when an intruding walked behind me and the mess erupted, you asked if the president has full confidence in julia pierson. does the whole confidence thing a dance? >> sometimes. i think it's a legitimate question because i was personally stunned that for josh ernest, for two days this week, appeared to be not that stunned by the whole thing. >> you said where is the outrage? >> yeah the third day because the fence is one thing. the incident in atlanta, the elevator where a guy with the criminal record and a gun was inches from the president of the united states, and the white house said, well, we're investigating that. investigating this? something horrible could have happened. now i understand they were also doing a dance and we should respect which is they are trying to keep moral up. the last thing you want to do is attack an agency that's protecting the president or

but if push comes to shove the men and women in the capitol police or the united states secret servicenpd, they are all prepared to do that but it is a tough decisions to make in those few seconds. our job is to make it easier. >> host: airline a west virginian. you're on with the sergeant at arms. >> caller: yes, i have a different approach. i do bb than having our guns but we have problems here with welfare and everybody feels entitled. we have jobs in the community that nobody will do. it's a little bit of money but they won't do it because they get it anyway. so, my approach is to make people have pride in themselves. we need apprenticeship desperately in this country and we need a boot camp. and we need young people -- the parents don't know sometimes what is needed. so, they need to get it from somewhere else. and that is my approach. >> host: we are going to be talking about some of those economic issues that you bring up and how they are playing in the 2014 midterm election. diane is up next in winchester ohio on the line for republicans. good morning. >> caller: good morning.

protected the white house like you're protecting your reputation here >> let me be clear, the united states secret service does not take this lightly. with all due respect that's my point. as a casual observer to what has happened here, i don't think the secret service is taking their duty to protect the american president and his family at the white house. i don't think you're taking it seriously. >> woodruff: still, the white house said again today the president is confident the secret serice will implement any reforms needed. the accused fence-jumper, omar gonzalez, was indicted today on federal and state charges. >> woodruff: president obama hosted india's new prime minister narendra modi in a bid to repair strains in relations between their nations. the two leaders focused heavily on resolving trade disputes and improving economic ties. and the president praised modi's policies. >> i've been impressed with the prime minister's interest in not only addressing the needs of the poorest of the poor in india and revitalizing the economy there, but also its determination to make sure that india is serving

secret service. so what are we going to do? this whole thing is -- the united states secret service versus one mentally challenged man. and one man with a mental illness that you know has a mental illness. and this is the secret service against one individual with a mental illness and be lost. you lost and you had three shots at the sky and three chances. so what happens when you have a sophisticated organization with nefarious intent and resources going up against service? what happens then? >> dhs secretary jeh johnson said in a statement that i have determined that scrutiny by distinguished panels of independent experts of the september 19 incident and related issues, concerning the secret service is wanted. house oversight committee chair dear liza responded saying that problems with the secret service predate the tenure of ms. julia pierson and her tenure resignation does not resolve them. yesterday the committee called for an outside review and today they agreed that a review is critical. now, we are marked by a meeting of president netanyahu and president obama

the president of the united states in atlanta, georgia at the cdc. >> that and that alone is cause enough for a full sweep of the top personnel of the united states secret servicem sorry, i don't like to see anybody lose their jobs in any economic environment. but this is absurd. this is absurd a. man with a gun gets on an elevator with the president of the united states, the secret service agents the white house detail don't really know who he is? i'm sorry. top to bottom, you got to reshuffle the deck. >> i want to bring up a point tamika delicately touched on. i will touch on a little less delicately obviously we move forward as a society as we promote women into positions of authority. you spent a lot of time as well we should. we need to be careful, though, we are never ever throwing the baby out with the bath water as far as the best person always has to get the job. mica, as we go through her resume coming off the prostitute scandal, women on top good for the brand if you will. the brand doesn't work if it's not competent. in positions of national security quota second competency first. it's a delicate subject. >> while we go on this delicate subject, le

nobody with a gun not secret service is supposed to be able to get anywhere near the president of the united states. according to "the washington post" version of the events here, what happened was the secret service agents asked this security contractor to stop filming the president in the elevator with his phone. he refused to do that and when they questioned he was, he was fired by the supervisor and he offered to turn over the gun. that was the first time those secret service agents allegedly found out there was a man with a gun next to the president of the united states. >> also -- >> reporter: very deep breach. >> lead article in "the washington post" today. that had to be you would think the back breaker for julia pierson at this point. >> reporter: between that incident, the fence jumper and new details of a 2011 incident and an assailant machine gunned the front side of the white house and secret service didn't realize it was attacked for four days until a housekeeper found debris from the machine gun bullets on the truman balcony. that story also deeply damaging to the secret service's cr

point $5 billion spent by the secret service, nearly a oflion spent on protection first family, second family, former presidents and presidential candidates, the united statesecret service was always considered to be the elite law enforcement agency made up of men and women who were highly regarded, highly respected and highly trusted. grace --ry has placed great faith and trust in the secret service. the agents of the uniform division are officers and the secret service agents have a monumental task. that of protecting the nation's presidents past present and future. they do so honorably and not without personal sacrifice. they ensure the safety of the first and second family, yes, and the safety of foreign dignitaries throughout washington and at times, throughout the world. ensure the safety of every men and women who emptied the white house and the company holdings. but a history of misbehavior, security failures has clearly blemished that record. gonzalezber 19, omar jumped the north fence, a ran across the white house lawn, up whiteeps and into the house. he was armed with a three inch serrated knife. he entered through an unlocked door, past the stai

irs and everything else and people take a look at this and say, wait a minute, the secret service of the united statesms going back to when the salahis crashed the dinner and then the fence jumper. can't the secret service even protect the president of the united states? >> well the reason i think this is different. and you covered the white house for many years, i did cover it for a few years, for a while. but this is different. this is unique. the relationship that the president has with the secret service is hard for us that aren't protected are hard to understand, but of course it is first instinct to support them. their job is to say they will take a bullet for him. and there is a reason why these things happen. but what is questionable is why the press secretary at the white house came out this morning and said the white house had full confidence in here and knowing full well and even more known now from sources, it was clear after her very poor performance yesterday before congress that was kurt app -- curtains for her. >> but the cardinal sin is not to have answers for the white house or to le

united states? >> the secret service have a much more difficult job than i do and do heroic work every day. want to put that out there first. yes, it seems to be a real leadership problem here. the sources that have been talking to me call it a -- it's a coverup. it's just complete culture of coverup. that is the direct quote. they are just saying that this man should never have been allowed to get into the elevator with obama with a gun. guns are not allowed. only law enforcement who have been cleared by the secret service are allowed to have guns that have any where near president obama. >> do you know anything about the cdc and what kind of protocol they may go through to actually hire this type of a person? >> well, i asked those exact questions to the cdc, and they did not get back to me. they referred all questions back to the white house and were awaiting the white house briefing at 3:00 p.m. where we expect to get some answers. >> all right. because there are cameras in elevators almost every elevator now, so no doubt there is tape of exactly what happened when the president was in

like that occur, that there would be a pretty open channel of communication between the united states secret service and department of homeland security and ultimately the white house. host: it was "bloomberg news" that managed to get an interview with julia pierson and it was cowritten by wilber. she is a white house correspondent for "bloomberg news." hello. tell us about this interview and how you got it. >> it was my colleague who got the interview. dell has a longstanding relationship with the service and was able to get miss pearson on the phone yesterday for the exclusive interview. host: what are some of the things we learned? how did she react from the resignation and everything we saw in the news yesterday? >> she decided it was time to go, that the noise was getting to a level where it was too much, where it was going to be a distracted shun if she stayed. she figured it was the right thing to do at that time, given the mounting criticism that had really yes sheen doed after her testimony two days ago. host: what did she say about tear tenure and oversight of the agency? >> she served for