White House intruder was almost inside

A US Army veteran, who broke into the White House in Washington two weeks ago, made it further into the president’s home than previously claimed by the US Secret Service.

According to reports, 42-year-old Omar J. Gonzalez, jumped over the White House fence, ran across the front lawn and through the front doors before being tackled in the living quarters of President Barack Obama’s family.

The security breach that took place on September 21 was far more serious than previously disclosed and it is unheard of in recent decades. Officials from the Secret Service, the agency in charge of protecting the president, had originally said Gonzalez was detained at the main entry.

The new revelation comes on the heels of another embarrassing report over the weekend.

The Washington Post revealed that it took the Secret Service five days before realizing a man shot seven bullets at the White House in 2011 while one of Obama’s daughters was inside.

According to The Washington Post story, the 2011 shooting was remarkable because it uncovers an alarming string of security lapses and misjudgments by the Secret Service. The newspaper said that Obama has faced three times as many threats to his life as his predecessors have faced.

The embarrassing revelations have put Secret Service Director Julia Pierson in trouble. She is scheduled for a hearing on Tuesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

“There is nothing that can be said public that’s going to cause the American people to have confidence after the Secret Service failed to lock the front door as part of its protection of the White House,” said US Representative Darrell Issa, chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

AHT/AGB