Secret Servicegate is slowly coming into sharper focus. Here's what we seem to know:
- On January 16, 2021, Congress sent a "broad" preservation and production request to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Secret Service. Another was sent on January 25. Both requests were aimed at preserving records related to the 1/6 insurrection.
- On January 27, as part of a system upgrade called Intune, "USSS began to reset its mobile phones to factory settings as part of a pre-planned, three-month system migration. In that process, data resident on some phones was lost." Italics mine.
- In February the inspector general of HHS, Joseph Cuffari, asked the Secret Service for text messages related to the 1/6 insurrection. He learned about the purge of phone records at that time but didn't tell Congress. In June he issued a request for all text messages sent and received by 24 specific Secret Service agents between December 7, 2020 and January 8, 2021.
- The Secret Service eventually responded with a single text message.
- But what about backups? According to CNN, "A source familiar with the matter told CNN that employees were instructed twice to back up their phones." Employees were given instructions on how to do the manual backup but apparently the instructions were widely ignored.
- Today the Secret Service said that its search for further messages had turned up nothing. They were gone for good.
Do you remember those torture videos that the CIA destroyed in 2005? Or the night in 2019 when Jeffrey Epstein killed himself in a jail cell and we later learned that the guards were all napping and his roommate had been transferred and all the CCTV video had been erased due to a "technical error"? Sound familiar?
Nothing about the Secret Service's story makes any sense. They were doing a system-wide upgrade but didn't do a system-wide backup? They instead instructed their agents (twice) to back up their phones themselves, but apparently not a single agent did? Then, literally two days after getting a preservation request from Congress, they just went ahead with the system reset without bothering to check if it would erase anything Congress was interested in?
No. That's Brooklyn Bridge stuff. One way or another, it's hard to believe anything other than the obvious: those texts were damning enough that the Secret Service knew it would get in more trouble for keeping them than for erasing them—no matter how much trouble they'd get into for erasing them.
And they were right. Sure, they're taking some heat right now, and they'll take some more. But if they stick to their story that it was just a big ol' accident, there won't be much that anyone can do.
In the meantime, common sense combined with the fact pattern of the case tells us that these text messages must have been genuinely explosive. But because they're gone, the public perception will always be a shoulder shrug and the "coincidence" story will end up being the official narrative.
It's just unbelievable. Literally.
I'm sure there is no connection to this story.
Cheer up, Murray
The LIV tour needs
A head of security
For events in the USA
Including... Bedminster
Trump appointee moves on to cushy job in private sector.
Murray will be the new chief of security at Snapchat, which knows a thing or two about disappearing texts and pics. How fitting.
He's going to censure us in ( ( ( Big Tech ) ) ).
It seems to be an accelerating cascade...
Have the agents involved all been compelled to testify under oath before the committee?
Maybe we can ask Russia for them.
More likely, the captured lamestreamers who have acted as cutouts for Secret Service self-leaks of cocaine n' prostie orgies by agents in the course of protecting Democrat regimes.
I don't think it's any doubt that SS agents are engaging in debauchery during GQP presidencies, but somehow the pictures only leak when Democrats are in office. This is because the agents know they will likely get out, so they leak them themselves when Democrats, for whom none of them vote, are in office. They know the resulting scandal will stick to the agency only a short while, but Bill & Hillary & Barack will gain an administrative legacy of having amoral, out of control agents under their watch. In fact, in Bill's case, the lamestream media will likely say it was Bill Climpton's own collapsing zipper that created the permissive structure for the agents to engage on their own depravity.
Just more Democrat disarray.
I am curious as to why the service providers don't have backups? Further, how does the SS not have their own backups of the texts? Are there no policies or laws in this area? If not, they need writing ASAP.
Or just call in the FBI or NSA, they can certainly get our texts.
Regardless, I agree, this is almost impossible to believe.
Well, the service providers certainly had backups of the text messages, but I understand that they are routinely deleted after 90 days. That was still plenty of time for the Secret Service to preserve those messages if they wished, but they clearly didn't.
Or just call in the FBI or NSA, they can certainly get our texts.
Surely that cannot be the case. Else why is this such a big story?
There's a giant data center in Utah, I'm pretty sure I read somewhere a few years ago the FBI director said something along the lines of "Just collect everything, we'll go through if we have to". I have no doubt those text messages are stored somewhere.
Of course the FBI is basically a republican organization also so they'll probably "accidently delete" those messages also.
Freehdom isn't free.
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Combination...maybe???
1. They are constantly gossiping about their charges--in almost real time. Perhaps not the most secure thing to do.
2. If people see these texts, the Secret Service apparently is not so secret, they'll lose the trust of their charges.
3. They use their general bad behavior as an excuse to protect the traitor-in-chief.
4. They supported Trump's attempt to stay in power--oops.
Hard to say what's going on without more information.
Need to know what messaging app they were using -- Microsoft Teams, or a P2P app that only acted as a relay? They might get just metadata or they might access the actual messages -- it all depends on the quality of their IT. The people you want to talk to are the IT folks, not the bureaucrats.
What's in that SS letter outlining their compliance protocol to Archives re Federal Records Act requirements? Did they really allow end-users to pick what could be deleted, or were there strict guidelines, eg delete anything personal but on-job messages need to be retained.
This is the Feds, there were policies on these phones, and they were the SS, they, probably, because this is the SS, we’re restricted as to how they could even use the phones and what they could text. FFS, they protect the presidents life, they aren’t going to send a selfie to a friend with GPS information embedded in the photo.
Probably, because they aren’t known deep thinkers either.
This stinks to high heaven.
Rumor is Trump cheerlead the zionists........It's nothing we don't know.
Rejected lyrics from "Loser" by Beck?
Baby's in Reno with the Vitamin D
Trump cheerled the Zionists, lunged at the Secret Service
Monty, that is a DEEP cut!
They deliberately deleted the messages because they knew the messages would incriminate them and the Republicans they support.
They deleted the messages knowing that - law or no law - they would never suffer any consequences remotely close to those they'd suffer if the messages became public.
Yup.
Keith Schiller doesn't last forever, & they all know things can change... The Secret Service detail from the Jefe White House Wants to be the Insecurity of the 1st World for the Real Public Enemy.
Calling Five Eyes, anybody home?
Nothing internet is ever truly lost, we're told. People are fired because of a high-school picture somebody posted that shows them holding a beer can.
In the meantime, I don't think I've ever seen a clearer case for summary dismissal without pension rights. Let them draw their pay where their loyalties lie.
I think Merrick Garland should at least try to make a charge of obstruction of Congress stick. It is punishable by up to a 5 year sentence and I would go for the max. Somebody made a decision to go ahead with a destructive "upgrade" despite knowing that Congress had asked for the messages to be retained.
Then they'd all end up in jail....
At least that would let Biden start with a clean house....
You know, your pointing to criminal charges reminds me about that apartment-with-goodies scam that roped in a couple of agents on the FLOTUS detail back in the spring. Fancy apartment, lots of spiffy gadgets including iphones, surveillance systems, etc., claims they could get into anybody's stuff and get their info. IIRC it was rumored that there was foreign money behind it, but it's kind of disappeared from view since the spring. A) I bet those guys would know where to locate SS text traffic, and B) espionage investigations in the picture?
Haven't read Leonnig's book, but boy, talk about deep-seated institutional rot.
Meant to reply to robaweiler, sorry-- the system bumped me down a level.
Did reply to robaweiler-- I can only quote Emily Litella. "Never mind."
What is it that people are speculating happened? There were SS agents with days off who participated in the riots? That they were fixin' to assassinate Pence? That some/many of them were Trumpists who were sharing MAGA memes by text?
I have no idea what to think.
The news out of the US continues to get more depressing.
What makes me think that there was at least a contingent in the Secret Service that was prepared to make Pence “disappear” is that he apparently thought so. Wouldn’t be a bit surprised if the text proved that correct.
The country is sounding more and more like an over the top plot from a Netflix series.
Pence's refusal to let the Secret Service drive him to the Capitol before the count is more indicative of that than his refusal to leave with them after the March on Washington, 2021, breached the building.
But neither looks good for those shitheads.
I imagine it's something along the lines of agents warning each other that shit was about to get real with that protest heading to the Capitol and how best to shield Trump from being implicated in instigating a violent insurrection to overturn the election. Also, possibly stuff about trying to essentially kidnap Pence so he couldn't certify the electors.
I wouldn't be surprised if some of these agents weren't in contact w/ Proud Boys or other militia members providing "security" at the event and yes, sharing MAGA memes, and stuff.
Next time, the secret service will support the coup. Biden's life is in danger.
They supported it last time.
The only thing that kept them from driving El Jefe to the Capitol wasn't the January 6, 2021, March on Washington participants's guns but that all those people looked like freaks versus the buttoned up Secret Service people.
The agents were left wondering what happened to Roger Stone & Matt Schlapp that they couldn't get a dignified looking crew, like they did in Broward County. 2000.
Hey, at least the Secret Service wasn't storing them on a private server, amirite?
Or using an unlicensed, deaf, dumb & blind device repairman.
Now I want some group like Mogwai or Belle & Sebastián, or maybe a Delgados reunion, to re-record the Who's Tommy as the story of Mac Isaac, Delaware Apple Products Fixer. With Hunter Biden on the bongos.
I think more than likely there was some degree of cover up. But, as an employee for a large corporation, I also I find it pretty plausible that some employees missed/ignored/forgot about an email directing them to back up their text messages.
If you live in an at will, right to work state, I hope those employees are disciplined, up to & including termination.
I live in FL. Whenever we (often me) instruct associates to do something like that you can plan on only about half of them getting it done on the first pass without reminders.
Looks like we need to dispatch Florida Workforce Development Department re-educators to your office. & if that fails, Death Squads.
Which is why, when an agency or company is making a good-faith effort to comply with a save records directive, it sends each agent to an IT office where the messages etc are downloaded and kept under legal supervision. Especially where national security is implicated, as here.
You sure don't leave it to each individual employee whether to bother with complying or not. You'd only do that if you didn't really want to comply but didn't want to say so openly.
When I was working for EMC corporation all our phone apps operated in a secure container (basically a small virtual machine running on the phone). All the mail and message apps were within that container and I had no say on. the backup policy OR the routing of messages. E-mail, text, web access - all went in and out via company servers. I could delete a message - but if it had ever been sent - outbound or inbound, a copy was on a company server that I had no ability to directly access. The servers were backed up frequently and the backups were strictly controlled and purged according to policy defined and controlled by IT.
They didn't care if I sent and received personal messages or checked my bank balance, or looked up the weather forecast - but it was made clear that it would ALL be going through their servers. So there was a strong incentive to be - discrete.
And this was not considered a high security position by any means.
Good reminder that if your employer owns your device or account, your employer owns everything in it or on it, period. Emails, texts, contacts, metadata, all of it. So underlining yet again just how just much the SS at all levels wanted those texts to be gone.
Funny how the phone log at the White House also went dry.
Just like Bill & Hillary's Visitors Log.
Not to mention the "president's" schedule.
A Russian special military action story will be able to distract Americans from this corruption.
The January 6, 2021, March on Washington was the special Russian military action.
You're on fire, Monty!
We could wish...
... but that would be wrong.
Like Bill Simmons, if my sports bets tank, I will set myself on fire.
Shouldn't each agent who was in DC January 5 and 6 who didn't save their texts be asked why? Fear that there are ways to find out if they did text may keep them from just denying they did text, and nervous Nellys might give up info.
If it can be shown they failed to save the texts, transfer/suspend/ fire for insubordination.
DHS watchdog has launched criminal probe into destruction of Jan. 6 Secret Service text messages,
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/dhs-launched-criminal-probe-destruction-jan-6-secret-service-text-mess-rcna39392
I really think this requires some kind of special counsel outside DHS.
What about ex-FEMA Director Michael Brown? He already knows the department, but never worked there under El Jefe.
If the baboon colony win back the Senate they could bring back Ken Starr.
My take is that the Secret Service needs to be taken out of the mega department of "homeland" security and put back into Treasury, on the theory that there will be greater oversight. The fact that all texts (but one!) from the Jan 5-6 insurrection days were summarily deleted, apparently following a request for them, and it wasn't discovered for 18 months??? How is that not suspicious?
Also, the agents serving during the reign of that former guy (the LOSER) need to be phased out, ASAP. Retired, fired, and after investigation of this fiasco, maybe some of them prosecuted. Clean house. Is this the same crop who were in the headlines for drunken sex and drug parties when on travel with President Barack Obama? The rot has gone on for a long time.
Yes. Like Dukakis once said, a fish rots from the head down. I think that maxim applies in spades in these unfortunate series of events.
I still argue Michael Dukakis winning in 1988 would have been a bigger deal then than Barry Hussein winning in 2008.
Dukakis arguably has a funnier name, & his biography was much more immigrationist than Barry O's, who arises in at least half-measure from the dame WASP stock as every president save the New York Dutch van Buren & Roosevelt.
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