Rep. Cummings: President at Higher Risk Due to Secret Service Scandal

Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan “has done a very good job” responding to the prostitution scandal in Colombia, Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Cummings, a member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Sullivan acted quickly in getting the 11 agents allegedly involved in the incident out of the country and removing their security clearance.

Six of the agents have resigned, and Cummings said he wouldn’t be surprised if the remaining five check out, as well.

“We don’t know the full scope,” he said on CNN's news talk show. “We’re going to have to wait and see. It’s a sad situation. Our committee … we take this very seriously. This is our watch. The Secret Service is a phenomenal organization. This is an elite force.”

When asked by CNN host Candy Crowley whether President Barack Obama faces a higher risk of danger because of the Secret Service agents’ behavior, Cummings answered yes.

“It’s not only important that you be excellent, but we also don’t want people to even imagine, imagine, that they can pierce the shield of the Secret Service,” he said. “It bothers me a lot because I know that there are a lot of folks who are perhaps looking for opportunities to do harm to the president … and you never know. When they think that there’s a moment of weakness, Candy, that’s the time that they may think they can act.”