Chaos as Pentagon suddenly locked down by hazmat teams in gas masks
Pentagon police are in gas masks and full chemical gear Thursday as a hazmat team locks down floors 2 through 5 of the massive complex.
Floors 2 through 5 in corridors 4 through 7 have been locked down, and other floors have been evacuated, three sources told CNN. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency's hazardous materials response team is on scene alongside the Arlington County Fire Department.
"The Department is executing standard protection protocols, including a shelter-in-place order for the affected area," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said. Systems within the Pentagon, he added, "have detected an air quality issue necessitating precautionary measures until we determine its significance."
An internal security message obtained by CNN offered a rare glimpse inside the response — and a curious instruction to rattled occupants.
"This additional testing could take one to two hours. Response teams are in place and ready to support building occupants if necessary. You may observe response personnel from multiple agencies and precautionary measures taking place in the center courtyard. Please do not interpret these activities," the message read.
Retired Col. Cedric Leighton, a former Pentagon official, flagged a particular danger for some workers on CNN.
"There are certain facilities within the Pentagon that are windowless facilities, so the only air supply that they're going to get is from the air handling system that is in the Pentagon," Leighton warned.
Arlington Fire & EMS confirmed on X that its hazardous materials team is operating at the Pentagon "during a hazardous materials incident," posting 18 minutes before the Pentagon's public acknowledgment.
Tens of thousands of people work inside the building. The full scope of how many have been locked down or evacuated remains unclear.
This is a developing story.
MAGA senator mocked over bizarre request to see lewd texts
A MAGA senator is the target of ridicule after he made an odd demand to see an embattled candidate's lewd texts.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) went on Fox News to talk about Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner (D). Platner was in hot water ahead of the primaries after reporting by the Wall Street Journal and New York Times revealed he had been sending lewd messages to women while he was married.
"I wanna see those text messages," Kennedy demanded. "The sexting."
The odd request prompted cringes as people mocked him.
"Old perv," wrote Ron Filipkowski, the editor-in-chief of Meidas Touch. "I bet he does," agreed Democratic strategist Leslie Marshall.
"I bet you do," writer and media consultant Rex Bossert wrote. "But not the Epstein files?"
Others similarly called Kennedy out for his apparent hypocrisy.
"But not the Epstein files," noted writer and podcaster Hemant Mehta.
"Let's see those Trump Epstein files," wrote journalist Bill Huffman. "It's embarrassing how stupid they are. I hate them and they should all lose their jobs asap."
