White House Picks New Director for Embattled Secret Service - The Intercept

Joseph Clancy has been picked to be the new Secret Service director, sources told The Intercept. The White House press secretary confirmed the appointment. Clancy has been acting director of the agency since October.

The previous director of the long embattled agency stepped down after a series of security lapses, including an incident during which an intruder rushed the White House grounds and walked through the front door and all the way to the East Room before being stopped. That director, Julia Pierson, left in October. She herself was the subject of investigation by the DHS office of Inspector General. The agency’s numerous security breaches were the focus of congressional hearings and oversight investigations during her tenure, and during that of her predecessor Mark Sullivan.

At “a rather difficult time” for the Secret Service, Clancy “has a lot of credibility inside the agency,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said. He would not answer questions about other candidates for the job.

Photo: Susan Walsh/AP

https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/02/18/white-house-picks-new-director-embattled-secret-service/