Julia Pierson, the director of the Secret Service, resigned on Wednesday in the wake of a series of blunders by the agency, including the episode last month when an intruder with a knife jumped over the White House fence and made it deep inside the mansion.
Department of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson announced that Pierson had offered her resignation and that he had accepted it. "I salute her 30 years of distinguished service to the Secret Service and the nation," he said in a statement.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Pierson offered her resignation, believing it was in the best interests of the Secret Service. Both Johnson and President Obama agreed. The president called Pierson earlier on Wednesday to express his appreciation for her service to the agency and the United States.
Ultimately, Earnest said, "the president concluded that new leadership of that agency was required."
.@PressSec says Pres Obama is "deeply appreciative of her service," which adds up to a 30-year career for Pierson. pic.twitter.com/2C8iQ9JPPK— Brian Rie$ (@moneyries) October 1, 2014
“I think it’s in the best interest of the Secret Service and the American public if I step down,” Pierson told Bloomberg News shortly after her resignation was announced on Wednesday. "Congress has lost confidence in my ability to run the agency. The media has made it clear that this is what they expected."
"I can be pretty stoic about it, but not really," she added. "It’s painful to leave as the agency is reeling from a signifcant security breach."
Pierson's resignation comes one day after a blistering Congressional hearing in which she said she took full responsibility for the White House intruder, who ran through the White House front door on Sept. 19 in what she said was a direct threat to President Barack Obama's life.
It also comes on the heels of a report in the Washington Post that a "security contractor with a gun and three convictions for assault and battery" was permitted on an elevator with President Obama on Sept. 16 in Atlanta. The breach violated Secret Service protocols, which only allow the Secret Service to be armed around the president. Obama didn't know about the incident until Tuesday afternoon, "shortly before it was reported by a news organization," Earnest said on Wednesday.
Jake Tapper, Chief Washington Correspondent as CNN, said this was "key" to understanding why the Secret Service director had to resign.
WH confirms WH didnt know about elevator breach until "shortly before it was reported." This is key to understanding why Pierson is out.— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) October 1, 2014
With Pierson out, Secretary Johnson appointed Joseph Clancy, formerly special agent in charge of the Presidential Protective Division at the Secret Service, as interim acting director. Clancy had previously retired from the service in 2011. "I appreciate his willingness to leave his position in the private sector on very short notice and return to public service for a period," Johnson said. That position, which he began in July 2011, was at Comcast as Director, Corporate Security.
Joe Clancy headed the Presidential Protective Detail during the early years of the Obama presidency. pic.twitter.com/1xjdDA47lN— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) October 1, 2014
Here’s new acting Secret Service director Joe Clancy giving Reggie Love a fist-bump in 2009. pic.twitter.com/Q9iUe3o9vX— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) October 1, 2014
David Axelrod, a former senior advisor to President Obama, tweeted that he knew Clancy from when he led the presidential detail. "You could not find a better person to repair the Secret Service," Axelrod said.
I knew Joe Clancy when he led the presidential detail. You could not find a better person to repair the Secret Service.— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) October 1, 2014
The Homeland Security secretary also announced the creation of an independent panel of experts tasked with managing the "ongoing inquiry" into the fence-jumping incident.
See his full statement:
Johnson’s Statement: pic.twitter.com/7wHTWdJXpq— Brian Rie$ (@moneyries) October 1, 2014