News Headlines

ABC News Transcript

Show: Good Morning America

Anchors: Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts

Reporters: Chris Cuomo (New York, NY USA), Pierre Thomas (Washington, DC USA)

July 8, 2009

CHRIS CUOMO Good morning.

CHRIS CUOMO (Off-camera) And we have some big exclusive new video this morning that's raising concern about security at our federal buildings.

GRAPHICS: SECURITY CONCERNS

CHRIS CUOMO (Off-camera) After 9/11, you might think they'd be among the most secure facilities in the country. But our Pierre Thomas is about to show you that's not necessarily the case.

EXCLUSIVE GRAPHICS: BOMB MATERIAL SNUCK INTO BUILDINGS

GRAPHICS: SECURITY ASLEEP AT SWITCH?

PIERRE THOMAS (Voiceover) In this exclusive video, watch closely as a congressional investigator walks live bomb components right by security in a federal building, compromised in 27 seconds.

SENATOR JOSEPH LIEBERMAN It's stunning. It's shocking. It just says that, basically, some people have forgotten the lessons of 9/11.

PIERRE THOMAS (Off-camera) In fact, investigators went to 10 federal buildings in undisclosed locations across the country and got the same result.

PIERRE THOMAS (Voiceover) And here's a result of what could have happened, potentially deadly explosions.

SENATOR JOSEPH LIEBERMAN This federal - protective service to me has got trouble from top to bottom.

PIERRE THOMAS (Voiceover) Investigators found this guard sleeping at his post, learned that a guard accidentally fired his weapon while practicing pulling it out in the bathroom. Discovered that one guard was so distracted, he actually ran a baby in a carrier through an X-ray machine.

HARRY "SKIP" BRANDON (FORMER FBI COUNTERTERRORISM CHIEF) The central issue that I see in this, in this whole really major problem is lack of training.

PIERRE THOMAS (Voiceover) Homeland Security officials say they take the results of the investigation very seriously, and have taken short-term and long-term steps to address them. With 9,000 federal buildings to protect, they have to. For "Good Morning America," Pierre Thomas, Washington.