Democrat President Joe Biden’s administration tried to cover up the Chinese spy balloon that was gathering data in America’s airspace this week, according to reports.
The Biden admin sought to keep the balloon’s presence hidden from the American people because officials didn’t want the situation to disrupt Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to China to meet with the ruling Chinese Communist Party.
U.S. officials were “well aware” that the balloon had crossed into American airspace on January 28 but desperately tried to hide the fact from the public, Bloomberg News reported.
The Biden admin knew that it was over Idaho on Tuesday, but decided to not inform the public to not upend Blinken’s diplomatic trip to China, the report reveals.
White House officials who spoke with Bloomberg told the outlet that they knew the balloon was over Montana on Wednesday.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley told President Joe Biden that shooting down the balloon could pose a threat to civilians, the officials reportedly told the outlet.
The report added that the White House wanted to be careful because relations with China could be a big issue in the 2024 elections.
Officials were also “baffled” by China’s claim to not know what was going on with the balloon.
Bloomberg noted that the Biden administration only decided to inform the public after the Billings Gazette published a picture of the balloon, which “forced Biden’s hand.”
In the end, Biden’s efforts to conceal information about the balloon to save Blinken’s China trip failed.
On Friday, Blinken said his team concluded “conditions were not conducive” for him to continue with a planned visit to China this weekend.
Blinken also said he conveyed it was an “irresponsible act and that the PRC’s [Communist China] decision to take this action on the eve of my planned visit is detrimental to the substantive discussions we were prepared to have.”
In addition, Blinken said he told his counterpart that the United States “remains committed to diplomatic engagement with China” and that he plans to visit Beijing in the future “when conditions allow.”
The balloon was spotted over North Carolina on Saturday morning as it appears to head toward the Atlantic Ocean.
The balloon is believed to have sailed over parts of Tennessee last night before heading over Asheville and Charlotte, North Carolina.
As Slay News reported, The U.S. Air Force shot the balloon down just off the coast of the Carolinas on Saturday.
READ MORE – Watch: United States Shoots Down Chinese Spy Balloon Off the Carolina Coast
