New White House Fence “Concepts” Discussed

The White House security fence could be raised soon, as Congress pressures the Secret Service to make the change to prevent security breaches.

In recent days, the Secret Service has been meeting behind closed-doors with the little-known government agencies that would have to approve the changes: The National Capital Planning Commission and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.

Staffers for both agencies are discussing "concepts" for a new fence. Though both agencies said no formal request has been handed over, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts said it is set to meet Tuesday and could receive a proposal by then.

Top administrators of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will brief congressional leaders in the coming weeks about their plans for changes to the fence. In a new, formal request to the agency's secretary, leaders of the U.S. House Government Reform Committee requested the fence be raised 4-to-5 feet and any horizontal pieces be removed.

The pressure to raise the fence follows a fence jumping in which an intruder made it into the White House.

“There's some very simple fixes that could've been done a long time ago,” former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino said. “Something like a curvature at the top of the fence, which would make it that much more difficult for you to fight against gravity."

But the fact that the fence wasn't immediately raised shows the many levels of government approval through which the Secret Service must go to make a change, Bongino said.

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"People have seen the Clint Eastwood ‘In the Line of Fire’ movies, and there's this impression that you open your commission book and say, ‘We're the feds, the Secret Service, we're here,’ and everything just works,” Bongino said. “That's not the way it works. Even when it comes to local police departments when we travel out of town, there are things they can and can’t do. There's always a negotiation."

The Secret Service did not respond to requests for comment this week, but the agency's acting director recently told congressional leaders about his thoughts for possible adjustments to the fence.

Editor's Note: A previous version of this article mistakenly indicated that the National Capital Planning Commission would meet Tuesday.

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