A Secret Service probe into who left a small bag of cocaine in the White House earlier this month has concluded without a suspect being identified—reigniting right-wing conspiracy theories about sham probes and Hunter Biden.
“At this time, the Secret Service’s investigation is closed due to a lack of physical evidence,” the Secret Service conceded in a press release on Thursday.
The determination puts a disappointing cap on a bizarre saga for the Biden administration, which had promised to conduct a thorough investigation. Conservative pundits had seized on the discovery, pointing a finger at Hunter Biden despite there being absolutely no evidence implicating the president’s son.
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The probe appears to have come up empty, however. Sources told CNN investigators combed through visitor logs and watched hours of surveillance footage in the days that preceded the July 2 discovery. The baggie was found in a cubby hole in the West Wing where staff-led tours of the White House pass through.
A summary of the agency’s findings, obtained by the Associated Press, said that no fingerprints or DNA were found on the baggie despite it being examined by an FBI crime lab.
The Secret Service was reportedly unsure of the exact day the cocaine was left in the White House, with sources telling CNN the cubby was in a blind spot for security cameras.
In their statement, the Secret Service conceded “there was no surveillance video footage found that provided investigative leads or any other means for investigators to identify who may have deposited the found substance in this area.
“Without physical evidence, the investigation will not be able to single out a person of interest from the hundreds of individuals who passed through the vestibule where the cocaine was discovered.”
Outrage ensued from Republican lawmakers, who remain hell-bent on continuing the probe despite the Secret Service’s admission there are no leads left to chase.
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) reportedly stormed out of a Secret Service briefing for lawmakers just moments after it began. Outside, he called the probe’s conclusion “bogus” and the investigation a “complete failure.”
“Y’all know you can’t go in [the White House] without giving your Social Security number anyway, and to say that it’s just some weekend visitor, that’s bogus,” Burchett said. “Nobody’s buying that at all.”
The unfounded finger-pointing at Hunter Biden was only stoked when White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre snapped at a New York Post reporter who asked if she could say “once and for all” the drugs didn’t come from a Biden family member.
“They [the Biden family] were not here on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, so to ask that question is incredibly irresponsible,” Jean-Pierre replied.
On other occasions, Jean-Pierre deflected questions about the cocaine—promising a proper probe but saying little more.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) insinuated on Thursday that the lack of answers may be part of a cover-up by the Biden administration, though she didn’t mention the president’s son by name.
“Every time there’s something strange going on with President Biden or his family, or anything regarding his administration or the White House, no one can ever seem to find an answer,” Mace said. “This is one of the most secure locations in the world, some of the best law enforcement officers in the world, and they don’t have any answers.”
The Hunter Biden conspiracy hasn’t been limited to lawmakers.
Last week, Fox News anchor Julie Banderas stopped short of outright accusing Hunter Biden, instead claiming to be “just asking questions” about whether the coke belonged to him.
When told Hunter Biden wasn’t among the hundreds and hundreds of people who would have been in the White House in the days preceding the discovery, she insisted, “[The Bidens] were there before it was discovered and after. Hunter Biden was, in fact, at Camp David two weekends in a row with his father. These are legitimate concerns of the American public.”
In an impromptu press conference Thursday, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) demanded the Secret Service order drug tests for hundreds of people who visited or work in the White House to see if any results returned positive for cocaine.
“It makes no sense to me whatsoever why they would not follow through on one simple task, and that’s to drug test a list of 500 people that they have that are potential suspects for this,” Greene said. “This was a failure of this investigation.”
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said she was told that the cocaine was found in the 15th of 182 lockers used by White House visitors to store their devices. The cubby in question was unlocked and missing a key, she said.
Unlike Greene, Boebert said she’s fine with the Secret Service choosing to not drug test White House visitors, adding that it would have been “a very unusual thing to drug screen random citizens,” the Post reported.
