OVERNIGHT OPEN THREAD Spy Balloons
On Thursday afternoon the Pentagon announced that a “high altitude surveillance balloon” had been located over the continental United States over the last two days, and that steps had been taken to ensure that sensitive military and government information was not at risk of being intercepted, but that the balloon was still drifting over the country. While the official didn’t state which country the Pentagon believes owns this weapon of war, a “senior official” said they’re “confident” it belongs to China.
Many excuses have been given about why the balloon hasn’t been intercepted or shot down, and now Bill Melugin of Fox News reports that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is requesting a “Gang of Eight” briefing on the issue.
The “Gang of Eight” are the eight members of Congress who are briefed on classified intelligence matters by the Executive Branch, specifically, the leaders of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, and the Republican and Democrat leaders of the House and Senate. Currently, that would be McCarthy, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH), Rep. Jim Hines (D-CT), Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Mark Warner, Sen. Mitch McConnell, and Sen. Chuck Schumer. It’s extremely consequential that Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) is no longer eligible to receive this briefing.
In our original story we reported that a “senior official” confirmed to Fox News that the US government is confident that the spy balloon belongs to the CCP/PRC. That same senior official provided the outlet with additional information about the its location and actions taken by the military:
“You did see reports yesterday of a ground stop at Billings Airport and the mobilization of a number of assets, including F-22. The context for that was that we put some things on station in the event that a decision was made to bring this down while it was over Montana. So, we wanted to make sure we were coordinating with civil authorities to empty out the airspace around that potential area. But even with those protective measures taken, it was the judgment of our military commanders that we didn’t drive the risk down low enough. So, we didn’t take the shot,” the official said.
A separate source told Fox News that the military is considering a number of options regarding how to “deal” with the balloon, including shooting it down if it’s believed there would not be civilian casualties.
This isn’t the first time such a balloon has entered US airspace, sources said, adding that “They’re trying to fly this balloon over sensitive sites, one of which was just mentioned to collect information,” but that it’s likely not collecting “information of significant value” to the CCP.
Jesse Watters reported that the balloon first went over Alaska then into Canadian airspace before entering the United States.
This is a little goofy, and likely another expression of the Beijing dragon doing the propaganda dance. According to multiple media sources a high altitude “spy balloon” is drifting over U.S. airspace and the Pentagon has discussed options for shooting it down yet they didn’t.
It’s goofy because the balloon is floating well above commercial airline routes and, well, what could China capture via balloon that they are not already capturing via satellite surveillance. It’s just odd. {Direct Rumble Link}
I can understand not shooting it down – after all, that approach would likely then involve bits of the thing falling to the ground, which then would pose both a hazard and a need to collect all the debris. It seems more like a Beijing propaganda effort than an actual risk to any U.S. military interests.
Washington DC – House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Thursday night called for a briefing of the “Gang of Eight” — the group of lawmakers charged with reviewing the nation’s most sensitive intelligence information — following reports of a Chinese spy balloon flying over Montana.
“China’s brazen disregard for U.S. sovereignty is a destabilizing action that must be addressed, and President Biden cannot be silent,” McCarthy tweeted. “I am requesting a Gang of Eight briefing.” (read more)
Have no fear, the Pentagon is investigating with their best men, whoops – I mean people, or people-kind, or non-binary persons who are within what we previously called the U.S. military, or defense dept. Whatever all that is now….
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