In an attempt to reassure the public about drones in East Coast states, President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that the rise in reports of unmanned aircraft sightings was not concerning.
“Apparently nothing sinister,” Biden told reporters at the White House. “We’re keeping a careful eye on it. No sense of danger as of yet.
Biden’s initial public words on the subject complement an increasing number of promises from his administration.
However, despite conspiracy theories and growing public concern linked to the sightings, the frequent sightings have prompted calls for additional information from people of all political stripes, including members of Congress, Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul of New York, and President-elect Donald Trump.
On Tuesday evening, Biden stated that “there s a lot of drones authorized up there.”
According to a joint statement released Monday by the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Defense Department, and the FBI, over a million drones are legally registered with the agency. The agencies stated that the sightings are not unusual and do not represent a threat to public safety or national security.
Among the items identified were commercial, hobbyist, and law enforcement drones, along with some crewed fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars, the agencies said Monday, adding that officials had received over 5,000 tips in recent weeks.
Members of the House Intelligence Committee were informed by intelligence officials on the drone sightings behind closed doors on Tuesday afternoon.
The panel’s leading Democrat, Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., stated that officials had repeatedly reassured them that the drones were not being used illegally or by anyone with malicious intent.
John Kirby, the spokesperson for the National Security Council, encouraged Congress to enact legislation Tuesday on NBC’s TODAY show that would provide federal, state, and local government bodies with greater authority to deal with the increasing number of drones entering U.S. airspace.
The short-term funding bill that Congress leaders unveiled Tuesday night includes a clause that would extend a program run by the Department of Homeland Security that permits government agencies to coordinate and combat drone threats.
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