Montana’s Republican Senator Steve Daines sent a letter to the Department of Defense (DOD) demanding answers on the suspected Chinese spy balloon spotted above his state. Daines sent a late letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Thursday amid reports of the suspected surveillance balloon over U.S. airspace.
The Montana Republican called the high-altitude Chinese balloon a “concerning event” and told Austin that the “fact that this balloon was occupying Montana airspace creates significant concern that Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB) and the United State’s intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fields are the targets of this intelligence gathering mission.”
Daines wrote that given “the serious nature of the event,” he is “requesting a full security briefing from the administration on this situation.” “It is vital to establish the flight path of this balloon, any compromised U.S. national security assets, and all telecom or IT infrastructure on the ground within the U.S. that this spy balloon was utilizing,” the letter reads.
“As you know, Montana plays a vital national security role by housing nuclear missile silos at Malmstrom AFB,” the senator continued. “Given the increased hostility and destabilization around the globe aimed at the United States and our allies, I am alarmed by the fact that this spy balloon was able to infiltrate the airspace of our country and Montana,” he added.
Daines told Austin that there “is no higher priority for your administration than the safety and security of the American people and it is imperative that your administration reassure them of that fact at this time.” The Pentagon did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s after-hours request for comment.
A spokesperson for Democratic Montana Sen. Jon Tester told Fox News Digital that he “is monitoring this situation closely and will continue to receive updates from DOD.”
On Tuesday, Tester — a third-generation farmer — and lead Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota introduced the Promoting Agriculture Safeguards and Security (PASS) Act to prevent foreign adversaries like China from buying into the U.S. agriculture industry.
In addition to the prohibition on adversaries buying into U.S. agriculture, the bill would also add the Agriculture Secretary to the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment and require the president to report to Congress any waiver granted. (SOURCE)
