Coverage dated February 2, 2023 to February 9, 2023

Biden Says Chinese Spy Balloon Not Major Security Breach

Headline from Voice of America, on the newest of 4 developments

President, who has sought to maintain communications with China and not allow tensions with Beijing to get out of control, tells Noticias Telemundo that he did not regret waiting until the balloon was over water to shoot it down

Voice of America's own description from its feed. We collect headlines and these descriptions, not full articles; read the original reporting below.

Earlier updates in this story

Developments in this update

4 dated developments, oldest first, newest marked. Each is named by one outlet's own headline; open its reports to see every outlet that covered it.

  1. Chinese Spy Balloon Updates: Biden Knew Earlier, Craft Possibly Seen Over North Carolina And May Be Shot Down Over Atlantic

    Headline from Forbes ·

  2. US lawmakers clash over Biden's handling of Chinese balloon

    Headline from Digital Journal ·

  3. Biden asserts U.S. "made clear" it will protect sovereignty against China

    Headline from Newsweek ·

  4. Newest

    Biden Says Chinese Spy Balloon Not Major Security Breach

    Headline from Voice of America ·

Read the reports

Reports & sources

52 articles, oldest first.

  1. Washington Examiner

    Biden was briefed on Chinese spy balloon on Tuesday, White House says (opens Washington Examiner)

    Published

    Washington Examiner's feed description

    President Joe Biden is tracking the Chinese spy balloon above Montana "closely" after first being briefed on its presence on Tuesday.

  2. Fox News

    Republicans push Biden to stop ‘appeasing’ China and shoot down the spy balloon (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Three Republican members of Congress demanded President Biden shoots down the suspected Chinese spy balloon: Sen. Tom Cotton, Rep. Ryan Zinke, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.

  3. BizPac Review

    ‘This is really egregious’: Former Trump nat sec official slams Biden admin’s inaction on Chinese spy balloon (opens BizPac Review)

    Published

    BizPac Review's feed description

    A former national security official in the Trump administration blasted President Joe Biden Friday over inaction as a Chinese spy balloon drifted across the United States. “When […]

  4. PJ Media

    BOMBSHELL: White House KNEW About the Chinese Spy Balloon and Covered It up — but Then… (opens PJ Media)

    Published

    PJ Media's feed description

    Joe Biden's handlers knew about the spy balloon all along, but kept the knowledge secret so as to avoid a confrontation with the Chinese Communist Party.

  5. Forbes

    Chinese Spy Balloon Updates: Biden Knew Earlier, Craft Possibly Seen Over North Carolina And May Be Shot Down Over Atlantic (opens Forbes)

    Published

    Forbes's feed description

    A second suspected Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted over Venezuela and Colombia, while the one floating over the U.S. was reportedly seen over North Carolina.

  6. Fox News

    Jordan, Cruz shred Biden over suspected Chinese spy balloon by comparing him to past presidents: 'Weakness' (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Rep. Jim Jordan said President Biden's inaction on the suspected Chinese spy balloon flies in the face of previous presidents, like Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy.

  7. Newsweek

    Joe Biden breaks silence on Chinese spy balloon (opens Newsweek)

    Published

    Newsweek's feed description

    Prior to his Saturday remarks, President Biden faced scrutiny from Republicans over his handling of the balloon.

  8. Fox News

    TUCKER CARLSON: Biden administration's stance on Chinese spy balloon is scary (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Fox News host Tucker Carlson calls out thee Biden administration's response to the Chinese spy balloon flying over the U.S. on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

  9. Fox News

    Suspected Chinese spy balloon could end up over the Carolinas later this weekend if Biden fails to take action (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Should President Biden fail to act on a suspected Chinese spy balloon, it could make its way over the Carolinas by Saturday afternoon, completing a trip across the United States.

  10. CBS News

    Cruz says Biden "telegraphed weakness" with response to suspected Chinese spy balloon (opens CBS News)

    Published

    CBS News's feed description

    U.S. fighter jets shot down a suspected Chinese reconnaissance balloon on Saturday, days after it was initially spotted over Montana.

  11. RedState

    There Are Big Problems With Biden Team's Evolving Story About Prior Chinese Balloons (opens RedState)

    Published

    RedState's feed description

    Either Biden is gaslighting us big time to smear Trump or there's a real problem here.

  12. Breitbart News

    Biden Administration Tried to Hide Chinese Spy Balloon from Public (opens Breitbart News)

    Published

    Breitbart News's feed description

    The Biden administration was aware of a Chinese spy balloon entering U.S. airspace on January 28, but tried to hide its existence from the public.

  13. The Guardian

    Now the Chinese ‘spy balloon’ is down, the question is: what was it for? (opens The Guardian)

    Published

    The Guardian's feed description

    Was Beijing trying to sabotage talks with the US, monitor the speed of its military response, or just test Joe Biden’s mettle?

  14. Fox News

    Biden’s botched response to China’s spy balloon was a national security ‘blunder’ of ‘incalculable damage’ (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe reacts to the Biden administration's highly controversial handling of China's spy balloon.

  15. Insider

    Republicans are blaming Biden for letting a suspected Chinese spy balloon cross into the US. It happened 3 times during the Trump administration, officials say. (opens Insider)

    Published

    Insider's feed description

    Pentagon officials said similar incidents occurred at least three times during the Trump administration and once earlier under Biden's leadership.

  16. Fox News

    Critics see Chinese spy balloon as Biden's latest policy blunder (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    The Chinese spy balloon saga is being presented by critics of the administration as the latest blow to the U.S. foreign policy under the leadership of President Biden.

  17. Hot Air

    Biden's weakness on spy balloon assures Chinese aggression (opens Hot Air)

    Published

    Hot Air's feed description

    President Joe Biden’s weakness with China is once again on display. Earlier this week, U.S. officials tracked a Chinese reconnaissance balloon over the American mainland. A Chinese Communist Party spo...

  18. Fox News

    Republicans rip Biden after Chinese spy balloon shot down: ‘Our enemies used to fear us’ (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Several congressional Republicans tore into President Biden after the Chinese spy balloon that hovered over the U.S. for several days was shot down off the coast of South Carolina.

  19. Fox News

    Pete Buttigieg says Biden handled Chinese spy balloon 'appropriately' amid backlash from Republicans (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg came to President Biden's defense on Sunday when asked about the Chinese spy balloon, saying it was "handled appropriately."

  20. Fox News

    Biden's decision to 'allow' Chinese spy balloon over US is 'a joke,' Homeland Security committee member says (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    A member of the House Committee on Homeland Security said that President Biden allowing the Chinese spy balloon to travel over the United States is a "joke."

  21. France 24

    US lawmakers clash over Biden's handling of Chinese balloon (opens France 24)

    Published

    France 24's feed description

    Republicans savaged Joe Biden on Sunday over his handling of a suspected Chinese spy balloon, while Democrats defended the president's decision to shoot it down after it floated across the United States…

  22. Politico

    Biden admin offers to brief Trump officials on past Chinese spy balloon incursions (opens Politico)

    Published

    Politico's feed description

    Officials in the last administration denied that the airships had flown over the U.S. on their watch.

  23. Washington Times

    China’s trial balloon exposes Biden’s open borders (opens Washington Times)

    Published

    Washington Times's feed description

    A Chinese spy balloon is not the only thing President Biden just shot down.

  24. Fox News

    China spy balloon fiasco exposed Biden's astonishing weakness and Xi will drive a truck through it (opens Fox News)

    Published

    Fox News's feed description

    A Chinese surveillance balloon made a leisurely flight from coast to coast last week over the United States. The response from the Biden administration's foreign policy team was weak.

  25. Breitbart News

    Biden Official Says U.S. Unaware of China Spy Balloons During Trump (opens Breitbart News)

    Published

    Breitbart News's feed description

    A Biden administration official confirmed that the United States was unaware of the other Chinese spy balloons that flew over the country.

Showing the first 25 of 51 headlines. ·

Identical headlines usually mean shared wire copy. They are counted as separate articles but are not independent confirmation.

Biden Says Chinese Spy Balloon Not Major Security Breach | Since Then