Nov 30, 2009 6:55 am US/Eastern
NY's King Demands Probe Of White House Gate Crash
Rep. Peter King: 'We Can't Show This Type Of Weakness To Terrorists, To Psychopaths'
WASHINGTON (CBS) ―
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This Nov. 24, 2009 photo shows Tareq Salahi and Michaele Salahi arriving for the State Dinner in honor of India's Prime Minister.
Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images
A member of the House panel that oversees the Secret Service says the security lapse that allowed a couple to crash a White House state dinner is unforgiveable and must be corrected.
Rep. Peter King said "we can't show this type of weakness to terrorists, to psychopaths."
The New York Republican joined Sens. Evan Bayh of Indiana and Jon Kyl of Arizona in calling for an investigation of the incident in which Michaele and Tareq Salahi were allowed into the state dinner for the visiting prime minister of India on Tuesday night.
"You've got to send a strong deterrent that people just don't do this kind of thing," Bayh said on "Fox News Sunday."
Kyl agreed, saying, "If it's a federal crime to lie to a federal agent, and these people didn't tell the truth about their invitation, then they should be in some way brought to justice here, again, as an example to others not to do it."
King said on Monday that a full investigation is necessary "to find out exactly what the Secret Service is doing to make sure this never happens again."
According to authorities, Michaele and Tareq were allowed into the White House dinner even though they were not on the guest list. The Secret Service has apologized for the breakdown in security, and an investigation into possible criminal behavior is ongoing.
Casey Margenau, a friend of the Salahis, appeared Saturday on Fox News Channel's "Geraldo at Large" and said, "I understand that they spent Friday with the Secret Service and they have been cooperating."
The New York Times, citing an anonymous federal official, reported Sunday that the Secret Service interviews with the Salehis continued through Saturday.
Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan refused Sunday to provide information on the investigation, telling The Associated Press, "We are not going to comment any more this weekend."
"It's an incredible situation," said Bayh. "I mean, of course, people have been laughing about it, ... but it's not a laughing matter that people could get that close to the president and the vice president who aren't supposed to be there."
(© 2010 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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