Washington: A powerful Congressional committee on Thursday warned Tareq and Michaele Salahi, the couple who gatecrashed into the White House state dinner hosted in honour of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, that they will be forced by subpoenas to appear before it for questioning.
The strong warning from Congressman Bennie G Thompson, chairman of House Committee on Homeland Security, came on Wednesday evening after attorney representing the Salahis informed that the Virginia couple may not appear before the Committee tomorrow.
Thompson, in his capacity as the chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security which oversees the working of the Secret Service, has convened a hearing to discuss the circumstances of the Salahis gate crashing into the state dinner hosted by President Barack Obama in honour of Singh on November 24.
"I was informed by the Salahis` counsel, that their clients, Tareq and Michaele Salahi, may not appear before the Committee tomorrow as requested... If the Salahis are absent from hearing, the Committee is prepared to move forward with subpoenas to compel their appearance," Thompson said.
He said the Salahis` testimony was important to know how a couple circumvented layers of security at the White House on the evening of a state dinner without causing alarm.
"The Committee on Homeland Security must understand the full scope of what went so terribly wrong on Tuesday night to ensure that security gaps are sealed. This can only be achieved by hearing both sides of the matter," he argued.
"Our goal is to try to get as much information about what occurred at this state dinner as possible and how this security breach happened. The White House should be the most secure home in America and this breach brought a real vulnerability to light," Thompson said in an interview to CNN.
Mark Sullivan, the head of the Secret Service, has agreed to testify before the committee, he said. However, Desiree Rogers, the White House Social Secretary, would not be appearing before the Congressional Committee.
"We are working with and are ready to work with anybody that has questions on that. I think you know that, based on the separation of powers, staff here (White House) don`t go to testify in front of Congress. She won`t – she will not be testifying in front of Congress tomorrow," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said.
In a related development, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jim Messina issued a memo in this regard which was posted on the White House website.
"The United States Secret Service announced that the preliminary findings of its internal investigation indicated that established security protocols were not followed at an initial checkpoint. As the Secret Service said last week, agents failed to verify that these two individuals were invited guests before they entered the White House," it said.
"After reviewing our actions, it is clear that the White House did not do everything we could have done to assist the US Secret Service in ensuring that only invited guests enter the complex," Messina said in a one-page memo.
"The White House staff were walking back and forth outside between the check points helping guests and were available to the Secret Service throughout the evening, but clearly we can do more, and we will do more," Messina said.
Beginning immediately for all official White House events, the memo said the White House staff will be stationed physically at the check points with the US Secret Service; guests will be checked off of the list by White House staff and the Secret Service will continue to ensure that all guests have been properly cleared before entering the White House.
According to the memo, guests whose names are not on the guest list will be assisted by White House staff present at the check point for appropriate resolution and as always the Secret Service will provide security and remain ultimately responsible for controlling access to the White House complex.
Meanwhile, The Washington Post in an editorial said it is time for the Salahis to be more forthcoming about their State Dinner escapade.
"Despite not being on the official guest list, the couple from Front Royal have insisted for a week that they were indeed invited to the November 24 state dinner for the Prime Minister of India. They broke their public silence on the `Today` show Tuesday. But they didn`t answer a key question: Who invited you? Yes, we`d like to know, too," The
Washington Post said.
"This is about more than the spectacle of Tareq and Michaele Salahi adding another series of celebrity photos to their Facebook ego wall. This is about the potential danger to the President revealed by their caper," the daily said.
PTI
