More involved in Secret Service scandal?

More involved in Secret Service scandal?

A U.S. lawmaker said today that more people may be involved in the prostitution scandal that led to the recall and investigation of 11 Secret Service personnel who helped organize President Obama's weekend trip to Colombia.

"We think the number might be higher," said Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Cal., chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Issa, speaking on CBS' Face The Nation, also said that the leaders of the Secret Service must determine whether similar incidents have happened before. Issa said agents who consort with prostitutes potentially expose themselves to blackmail, creating a possible threat to the president.

"We've got to ask, where are the systems in place to prevent this in the future?" Issa said on CBS.

Administration officials said Obama's life was never in danger, and that the alleged incident happened two days before the president landed Friday in Colombia for the Summit of the Americas. No members of the president's immediate protective detail are involved.

Five military personnel who were assisting the Secret Service in Colombia are also under investigation, officials said.

Paul S. Morrissey, an assistant director with the Secret Service, said the 11 accused special agents and Uniformed Division officers have been place on administrative leave, pending an investigation.

None of the accused were "assigned to the Presidential Protective Division," Morrissey said.

"The Secret Service demands more from its employees and these expectations are met and exceeded every day by the vast majority of our workforce," Morrissey said."This incident is not reflective of the behavior of our personnel as they travel every day throughout the country and the world performing their duties in a dedicated, professional manner."

Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., told CNN that Secret Service are accused of bringing women back t o their hotel in Colombia, part of the security zone being established for the president's visit.

Local police were called when one of the women refused to leave, claiming she had not be paid, said King, who chairs a congressional subcommittee on homeland security.

The agents did not necessarily commit a crime -- prostitution is legal in Colombia -- but are being investigated for dereliction of duty.

"They cannot put themselves in compromising position where they're open to be blackmailed or threatened," King said. "Nor should they be bringing prostitutes into a basically security zone 48 hours before the president of the United States is arriving."

White House officials are not commenting on the investigation.

"It would not be appropriate for the President to characterize something that's being looked into by the Secret Service at this time," said spokesman Jay Carney. "All I can tell you is that he was made aware of it. But beyond that I'm not going to characterize his reaction."