What’s New
The White House claimed it has yet to “rule out” roughly 100 information about a string of drone sightings in the Northeast.
Why It Matters
According to John Kirby, a spokesperson for the United States National Security Council, the government has determined that the sightings “include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and even stars that were mistakenly reported as drones.”
It was the most extensive evaluation the government has provided about the mysterious drone sightings, which were originally reported in New Jersey. But later in the day, Kirby said that the FBI needs additional time to investigate the reports.
What To Know
Kirby told CNN on Monday evening that the FBI is still attempting to “triangulate” around 100 inputs about the sightings.
“So when former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said today that he believes ‘our federal government is still struggling to figure this out,’ at this point you don’t think that’s true any longer?” CNN’s John Berman questioned Kirby. “You have, for lack of better words, figured it out?”
“I wouldn’t go so far as to say that,” Kirby said. “I would say that to date, of all the leads and the analysis we’ve done, we believe that these are commercial lawful drones or law enforcement drones, hobbyist drones.”
“What haven’t you figured out yet?” Berman pushed.
According to Kirby, “of the 5,000 or so tips and sightings that the FBI has looked at, they’ve really narrowed it down to about 100 that they still have to kind of check out, that we haven’t been able to rule out.”
After Kirby informed reporters on the government’s assessment on Monday, the FBI and New Jersey State Police issued a statement urging the public not to fire lasers at manned aircraft or shoot down suspected unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).
FBI “Newark and New Jersey State Police want to warn the public about an increase in pilots of manned aircraft being hit in the eyes with lasers because people on the ground believe they see [a] UAS,” the statement said. “There is also a concern with people possibly firing weapons at what they believe to be a UAS but could be a manned aircraft.”
According to the press release, “there could be dangerous and possibly deadly consequences if manned aircraft are targeted mistakenly as UAS.”
President-elect Donald Trump has publicly commented on the drone sightings, implying that the government knows where they are coming from but is keeping information from the public.
On Monday, he said that he had postponed a trip to his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, due to a purported drone sighting.
In a joint statement issued last week, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security said, “We have no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus.”
Nevertheless, they said, “while there is no known malicious activity occurring in New Jersey, the reported sightings there do … highlight the insufficiency of current authorities.”
What People Are Saying
At Mar-a-Lago, Trump told reporters, “I believe they’d be better off saying what it is.” Our military and president know, and for some reason, they want to keep people guessing.”
On ABC’s This Week, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, “There is no doubt that people are seeing drones.” And I want to inform the public that the federal government has sent extra resources, manpower, and technology to help the New Jersey State Police handle the drone sightings.”
What Comes Next
The White House will most certainly continue to face pressure from legislators and the public. Last month, homeowners in New Jersey reported seeing drones above.
In recent weeks, drone sightings have been reported in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, California, and Florida.
