Mysterious drones spark questions and concern
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - Drone sightings across New Jersey and the East Coast have sparked questions and calls for transparency from lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
"People have a lot of unanswered questions. What the heck are they?" Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) asked.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer says he's trying to get those answers. He's asked the Department of Homeland Security to implement a drone detection system in New Jersey and New York airspace. He also says Congress will propose legislation.
"...That says that our local authorities can also be involved in sighting and finding out what the drones are," Schumer said.
That's similar to Pennsylvania Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan's "Countering Drones" bill that she wants to be included in the latest spending package.
Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) says the government needs to be more forthcoming.
"We have 330 million Americans that just want to know the answer. The federal government should come out and authoritatively just explain to the American people what's going on," Markey said.
In a press call Saturday, an FBI official said that some of the sightings match with the approach patterns for planes landing at major airports.
"Some of those drone sightings are in fact drones. Some are manned aircraft commonly mistaken for drones," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday on ABC's This Week.
Mayorkas said there's no national security threat right now.
"We know of no foreign involvement ... We are vigilant in investigating this matter," Mayorkas said.
The sightings are still causing concern.
"I think maybe I won't spend the weekend in Bedminster. I've decided to cancel my trip," President-elect Donald Trump said.
Trump blames the current administration for a lack of information.
"Something strange is going on. For some reason they don't want to tell the people, and they should," Trump said.
The FBI says they've received about 5,000 tips regarding the drones and fewer than 100 have been deemed worth investigating.