White House gate-crashers take 5th Amendment at congressional hearing
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Tareq and Michaele Salahi, who got through White House security to attend a state dinner, today invoked their Constitutional rights against self-incrimination and refused to testify before Congress.
The Salahis refused to answer questions from lawmakers on the House Committee on Homeland Security, probing how the couple got past the Secret Service to attend a state dinner on Nov. 24 for the prime minister of India. The couple was able to shake hands and pose for photos with top officials including President Obama.
A federal grand jury is also probing the incident.
In a scene that could have come out of a dozen mobster movies or documentaries about Communist infiltration in the 1950s, Tareq Salahi would answer each question noting that on advice of counsel, he would not testify.
“I don’t respect your right to take the 5th Amendment” which protects against self-incrimination, an angry Rep Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) snapped at the couple. He said that their appearance at the state dinner was a serious security breach.
“Did you order a tuxedo,” Pascrell asked, trying to get Tareq Salahi to answer any question, thus breaking the constitutional privilege.
“Were you there?” Pascrell continued.
“On the advice of counsel,” Salahi began the formulaic response.
“Are you here today, right now,” Pascrell shot back to titters from the audience. “You got an answer from your attorney on that?”
Pascrell went on to say he hoped the couple would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for their actions.
Afterward, the Salahis’ attorney angrily denounced the hearing as “a charade” and a “public flogging” of his clients.
“The Salahis are innocent and have committed no criminal act,” he said, reading from a prepared statement. He insisted that the couple had been invited to the White House for an event. “This is not a publicity stunt,” he said, blaming White House aides who invited the couple.
Some Republicans have sought to have top White House aides to testify.
At the time, the couple were also auditioning for the upcoming Bravo reality television show “The Real Housewives of D.C.”
The Secret Service has apologized for the breach.
-- Michael Muskal
