According to a senior military official and senior defense official’s claims recently, the U.S. collected valuable intel on China’s surveillance activities as it monitored a spy balloon that roamed the continental U.S. skies for days.
According to the Daily Caller, President Joe Biden inquired from the Department of Defense about the possible military options at the U.S. disposal to neutralize the suspected potential threat of the Chinese spy balloon. The DOD, however, advised against such actions based on safety, stating that there were considerable concerns about debris falling off to harm civilians.
However, there were no clarifications on whether a military option was deliberated when the craft transgressed U.S. airspace over Alaska’s Aleutian Islands earlier in January before crossing into Canada and reentering U.S. territory in late January in northern Idaho.
The DOD’s hesitation to shoot down the balloon bought some time to make an informed decision.
“Waiting to down the balloon actually provided us a number of days to analyze this balloon, and through a number of means. We don’t know exactly all the benefits that will derive, but we have learned technical things about this balloon and its surveillance capabilities,” the defense official said in his statement.
BREAKING: DoD Says China’s Surveillance Balloon is “Currently Over the Center of the Continental United States” pic.twitter.com/w2iLEymxNC
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) February 3, 2023
The official added that the U.S. had the tie to study and scrutinize the balloon and its spying abilities, which were described as broad. This hesitation, however, didn’t sit well with some House members. Rep. James Comer (R-KY), House Oversight Committee Chairman, expressed his concerns about the Biden administration’s reluctance to shoot down the Chinese balloon surveilling the U.S. airspace.
The real question to answer is what is/could be inside this balloon? Is it large enough to carry an EMP or bio weapon device hidden inside the balloon? China Joe is destroying the USA on the world stage! He is weakening us to be taken over by globalists https://t.co/1ZYyThp0uQ
— American Patriot (@WTP2024) February 4, 2023
Questioned about his views on the Chinese balloon, Comer didn’t hold back as he called out Biden for his ineptitude.
“Well, I have concerns this is going to be another example of the Biden administration’s weakness on the national scale. I mean, you look at what happened in Afghanistan that hurt the reputation of America’s military strength. That hurt the reputation of our commander-in-chief,” said Comer in his response.
He added that the U.S. should be weary of China’s antics, claiming that the balloon should never have had access to fly over the country.
