


Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe refuted accounts from Pentagon officials that Chinese balloons entered U.S. airspace on at least three occasions under the Trump administration.
Ratcliffe, who served as former President Donald Trump's spy chief from 2020 to 2021, joined a few other former Trump administration officials claiming to have no awareness of such an incursion and described the recent balloon incident as "unprecedented."
MTG SAYS TRUMP WOULD NOT HAVE LET CHINESE SPY BALLOON ENTER US, OFFICIALS SAY OTHERWISE
"I can refute it. It didn't happen," Ratcliffe said on Fox Business's Sunday Morning Futures, before adding that "the damage is incalculable."
He continued, "Every time something goes wrong in the Biden administration, there's one of two responses. They either find a way to blame the Trump administration, or they try and find a way to say the Trump administration did it too."
"I can refute it. Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper refuted it yesterday. Former Secretary of State and CIA Director Mike Pompeo has refuted it."
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) February 5, 2023
WATCH: Former DNI John Ratcliffe debunks the claim that Chinese spy balloons occupied airspace during the Trump administration. pic.twitter.com/G3P9MDGqvD
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper both denied knowing about a similar instance of a Chinese balloon hovering through the United States. Senior Pentagon officials claimed that there were at least three occurrences under Trump and another one under Biden, the Associated Press reported. Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder also alluded to the previous instances his statement Thursday.
"Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the U.S. government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information," Ryder wrote in a statement.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), who is the vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, also called the recent Chinese balloon incursion "unprecedented," and noted that while there may have been minor breaches of U.S. airspace in the past, he was unaware of something so flagrant.
Military officials have indicated that a high-altitude balloon arrived near U.S. airspace on Jan. 28 and flew through domestic and Canadian airspace for roughly eight days. The Pentagon refrained from downing the device right away and waited until it was off the coast of the continental U.S. to avoid causing any harm to civilians from the debris.
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Republicans, including Trump, vehemently condemned the Biden administration's response, blasting Biden for showing weakness in the face of Chinese aggression. China claims that the balloon was used for meteorological purposes and happened to veer off course above sensitive military and nuclear outposts — a notion the Pentagon rejects.
China also condemned the U.S. for shooting down the device, blasting Washington for overreacting. Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed his trip to China amid the developments. Biden is set to deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday.