WASHINGTON — Secret Service representatives will meet with the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee in response to a request for a briefing about a bag of cocaine that was found in the White House, according to Anthony Guglielmi, the Secret Service's chief of communications.
The meeting is planned for 10 a.m. ET Thursday, said two sources familiar with the requested meeting.
Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., sent a letter Friday asking Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle for a staff-level briefing on the investigation by July 14.
"This alarming development requires the Committee to assess White House security practices and determine whose failures led to an evacuation of the building and finding of the illegal substance," the letter said.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., also sent a letter asking Cheatle to respond to a list of questions about White House security practices.
The cocaine was found July 2 in a cubby near the White House's heavily trafficked West Executive entrance, officials involved in the inquiry said. A formal lab test came back positive for cocaine Wednesday.
When she has been asked about the cocaine, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has emphasized that the investigation is under the purview of the Secret Service and said she is "confident" it will get to the bottom of the incident.
It is unclear how long the bag was in the White House before it was discovered, and officials have set low expectations for identifying who brought it.
The cocaine packet is still in a federal lab for testing, sources said.
