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Trump claims government knows where drones originated

By
Kathryn Watson
Politics Reporter
Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital, based in Washington, D.C.
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Kathryn Watson

/ CBS News

President-elect Donald Trump claimed Monday that the federal government knows points of origin of the mystery drones flying over New Jersey and other East Coast states, but wants to "keep people in suspense." 

The president-elect didn't offer evidence for his claim, and declined to comment on whether he's been provided an intelligence briefing on the matter. He said the federal government should let the public know what it's learned about the situation. 

On Monday night, the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, Federal Aviation Administration and Defense Department said in a joint statement, "Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones. We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the northeast."

Trump made his comments in a lengthy exchange with reporters Monday at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Drone sightings in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and other states along the East Coast have sparked concern from local officials who want answers about the drones, some of which have been located near military installations. 

"The government knows what is happening," Trump claimed, although the extent of the government's knowledge is unknown. "Look, our military knows where they took off from. If it's a garage, they can go right into that garage. They know where it came from and where it went. And for some reason, they don't want to comment. And I think they'd be better off saying what it is. our military knows and our president knows. And for some reason, they want to keep people in suspense."

Trump said he "can't imagine it's the enemy" behind the drones. He also said the drone sightings are near his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey, where he often spends the warmer months. 

"For some reason, they don't want to tell the people, and they should," he continued. "Because the people are really, I mean, they happen to be over Bedminster. They're very close to Bedminster. I think maybe I won't spend the weekend in Bedminster. I've decided to cancel my trip."

It's unclear whether Trump had plans to visit Bedminster. 

Federal lawmakers are pushing for more measures to track down the drones. 

On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he's requesting the Department of Homeland Security deploy a detection system. 

Rep. Mike Waltz, a Republican from Florida who is President-elect Donald Trump's pick for national security adviser, said on "Face the Nation" Sunday that federal agencies are "pointing at each other" to figure out what's happening. 

The FBI is the lead agency investigating the flying objects, a federal official said last week. An FBI official told CBS News the agency has received several thousand tips. Local law enforcement agencies are also investigating.

Eleanor Watson contributed to this report.

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