The Heritage Foundation’s request to obtain a list of potential individuals linked to a cocaine incident at the White House through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) has been denied by the Secret Service.
The incident came to light in July when cocaine was found on White House premises.
Post the closure of the investigation, the Heritage Foundation sought the details of people who may have had access to the specific area where the drug was discovered.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responded to the FOIA request on July 25, declaring that the requested records are not within the jurisdiction of the Secret Service and are thus not subject to FOIA.
The DHS wrote, “As your request seeks records reflecting visitors or related information concerning the Office of the President, please be advised that these records are not Secret Service agency records subject to the FOIA.”
It further stated that such records are regulated by the Presidential Records Act and are under the sole control of the White House.
This denial has led The Daily Signal, the news division of the Heritage Foundation, to suggest that the Secret Service might not have compiled such a list initially.
Steve Bradbury, a distinguished fellow at the Heritage Foundation, rejected the DHS’s reasons for withholding the list.
He emphasized that the categorization of a record as an agency record or a presidential record typically depends on “who generates the record and whose business the record reflects.”
Mr. Bradbury further questioned whether the Secret Service used the White House logs to generate a new record.
He said, “If it’s an agency record, it’s subject to FOIA. If it’s a White House record, it’s covered by the Presidential Records Act.”
He also mentioned that if a new document was created using White House logs, it should be subject to FOIA.
However, if no new record was created, it could imply that the investigation was not treated seriously. He suggested that the Heritage Foundation plans to contest the rejection.
Previously, the Secret Service declined another FOIA request by Bloomberg’s investigative reporter, Jason Leopold, relating to the cocaine incident.
Leopold sought records like emails, text messages, and other related documents regarding the cocaine discovery.
On July 11, the DHS informed him that his request could not be fulfilled as there were “no records or documents available to you at this time.”
The Secret Service confirmed the discovery of cocaine at the White House on July 3, suggesting that an authorized person or a staff member might have brought it in.
The incident stirred speculations about the possible involvement of the President’s son, Hunter Biden, who has publicly acknowledged his past struggle with drug addiction in his memoir “Beautiful Things.”
However, on July 13, the Secret Service announced the conclusion of the investigation, citing a lack of conclusive physical evidence.
They stated that the FBI’s analysis of the cocaine packaging did not reveal any latent fingerprints, and the DNA evidence was “insufficient” for investigative comparisons.
The Secret Service further noted, “Without physical evidence, the investigation will not be able to single out a person of interest from the hundreds of individuals who passed through the vestibule where the cocaine was discovered.”
Read the DHS letter to the Heritage Foundation below:
