Be very afraid. Janet holds court on the Hill.
Chairman McCaul questions DHS Napolitano at full committee hearing earlier today.
Update from PBS:
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House Homeland Security
In Washington, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano testified today before a congressional committee that some of the video collected from near the Boston Marathon finish line had raised questions.
She said there were “individuals” the FBI would like to speak to. “I wouldn’t characterize them as ‘suspects’ under the technical term. But we need the public’s help in locating these individuals,” she said.
“The investigation is proceeding apace. This is not an NCIS episode. Sometimes you have to take time to properly put the chain together to identify the perpetrators, but everybody’s committed to seeing that that gets done in the right way,” she told Representative Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.
Asked by McCaul if officials considered it a foreign or domestic terror plot, she said, “Right now, we can’t say one way or the other.”
Also today, an executive with the company whose battery was possibly used as a power source for at least one of the bombs said that he had reached out to Boston police and the FBI, but had not heard back.
Benjamin Mull, vice president of business development and technology with the California-based company Tenergy, said he was aghast to see pictures distributed by national news outlets of possible remnants of one of the bombs, with a Tenergy Sub-C battery attached.
The batteries are made for specialty remote-controlled cars, and they are only known among more dedicated hobbyists and enthusiasts. The company said it has produced “tens of thousands” of the batteries over the past several years.
“It’s twisted because it’s a battery we built for a toy. To have it used this way is appalling,” Mull said. “Not in a million years would I have imagined. I don’t know anything about bombs, I don’t know how this would be used or could be used.”
Mull said his company does not sell them to large retailers, like Target or Walmart. Instead, he said, his company generally markets batteries to hobbyist stores or specialty battery stores.
“We’ve contacted Boston police and the FBI and will assist in any way we can,’’ Mull said. “We have not heard back from the FBI yet.”