President-elect Donald Trump said Friday that the U.S. government must know more about the mysterious drone sightings along the East Coast this week, and if not, the drones should be shot down.
"Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "Can this really be happening without our government's knowledge. I don't think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!! DJT"
Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN's "The Situation Room With Wolf Blitzer" on Friday that Americans should not be concerned.
"Let me calm those nerves," Mayorkas said. "We have not seen anything unusual. We have not seen any unusual activity. We know of no threat. We know of no nefarious activity.
"I want to repeat that: We have not seen anything unusual; we know of no threat and of any nefarious activity."
Mayorkas' comments come amid multiple reports of sightings in Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania of flying objects. U.S. military officials have also confirmed reports of drones being spotted near and above bases in the United Kingdom and Germany.
"Let me explain," Mayorkas said. "People are reporting sightings of drones. It is very common for individuals who think they see drones to actually see small aircraft, and we have a case of mistaken identity. Also, we have six different people reporting what they think is a drone, and all of a sudden we have reports of six drone sightings. So, there's some duplication."
When asked about Trump's Truth Social post, Mayorkas said: "The statements I have made already are the principal message I want to communicate to the American public.
"We haven't seen anything unusual. We know of no known threat. Secondly, we have gone to Congress repeatedly asking for more authority to counter drone activity. And we have also asked for more authority to give to the state and local officials under our supervision because … those authorities need to be expanded."
Mayorkas said he has spoken daily with Democrat New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and that DHS has been in daily contact with New Jersey state police. He said state-of-the-art technology that DHS has deployed "has not confirmed any drone sightings" but it has confirmed "that some reported drone sightings are in fact small aircraft."
"That's not to say there aren't drones flying in the air, but we have no concern at this point with respect to a threat or any nefarious activity," Mayorkas said. "The reality is, you can have a 15-year-old kid who buys a drone off the shelf and puts it up in the sky.
"We have not seen drones turn their lights off in the dark. We have not seen drones penetrate restricted airspace. Those are two indicia that would give us a cause for concern."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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