Representatives from the White House, Department of Homeland Security, FBI and FAA briefed New Jersey mayors this afternoon, Middletown Mayor Tony Perry told NBC News.
Perry, who attended the briefing via Zoom, said viewers could not see who else was logged in, but he has contacted several other mayors to confirm they are also participating. He said he did.
Representatives from the agencies conducting the federal investigation led the press conference, which Perry said was “a waste of time.”
“To be honest, they didn’t provide us with any new additional information. In fact, it felt a little negative,” he said.
Perry downplayed any threat posed by drones, saying the meeting “went on and on” about the same piece of paper.
“Until I can tell you where these drones are coming from, I don’t buy into the idea that drones aren’t a threat,” Perry said, adding that many of the drones his constituents have reported are too large to fly. A hobbyist added that it was too elaborate.
“Their negative attitude is just the wrong message,” Perry said of the agency. “It’s your responsibility to protect them. It’s your responsibility to make sure they’re safe, and it’s frankly worrying that you’re ignoring that so much.”
Perry added that it is not the White House’s place to tell local officials not to worry.
“As we sit here in our hometown, in City Hall, watching drones fly over our facilities and infrastructure, there is an absolute desire to distance ourselves on behalf of the White House. “It seems like there’s ‘nothing like any kind of drone activity going on,’ eliminating it,” he said.
