President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden's new dog Commander, a purebred German shepherd puppy, arrives to meet virtually with service members around the world, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus in Washington on Dec. 25, 2021. (Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo)
Commander, the German shepherd owned by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, is reported to be a terror—and dangerous.
The dog has been involved in 10 attacks on members of the Secret Service over a four-month span, from October 2022 through January 2023, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records the watchdog group Judicial Watch obtained and released on July 25.
Some of the recorded attacks required agents to visit a hospital for treatment, as documented in the almost 200 pages of DHS records that Judicial Watch reviewed.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden take their dog Commander for a walk in Rehoboth Beach, Del., on Dec. 28, 2021. (Patrick Semansky/AP Photo)
Judicial Watch was forced to file a lawsuit to acquire the records after DHS “failed to respond adequately” to its request last December for records about biting incidents involving the purebred German shepherd.
The group said it filed the request after receiving a tip about Commander’s behavior.
Commander, a pedigreed German shepherd, arrived at the White House in December 2021 as a puppy, a gift from Joe Biden’s brother James.
‘Needs a Muzzle’
Among the heavily redacted Secret Service emails that Judicial Watch received through its filing include accounts of Commander attacks that took place in the first half of November 2022.
On Nov. 3, 2022, a Secret Service email relayed information on Commander biting a Uniformed Division (UD) officer “two times, one time in the upper right arm and second bite on the officer’s thigh,” and that the officer was treated by White House medical staff and a decision was made to transport the officer to a hospital.
On Nov. 4, an officer sent an email in which he described Commander biting an officer, that the dog attacked the officer again, and that the officer had to use a steel cart for protection from the dog.
“Doing alright? … That’s freaking crazy that stupid dog—rolling my eyes,” an officer wrote to the colleague Commander bit on Nov. 3.
The colleague responded: “My leg and arm still hurt. He bit me twice and ran at me twice.”
To which the officer replied: “What a joke … if it wasn’t their dog he would already have been put down—freaking clown needs a muzzle—hope you get to feeling better.”
An officer sent an email on Nov. 10 detailing how Commander was with Mrs. Biden in the Kennedy Garden and then sprinted toward the officer.
“As I continued walking,” wrote the officer, “I saw Commander exit the Kennedy Garden and sprint toward me. I immediately stopped and put my hands up. Commander then bit me on my left thigh and then ran back toward the First Lady.”
The email continued: “After I was relieved from my post, Sergeant [redacted] and I went to the White House Medical Unit to get the injury examined by a professional WHMU doctor.”
Commander is the third German shepherd to take residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, during the Biden presidency.
When the Bidens moved into the White House, they brought with them two German shepherds, Champ and Major.
Major was the first shelter dog to live in the White House. Champ died in June 2021.
Major is no longer living at the White House, for the same reason that Commander has earned such a threatening reputation: biting. Major was sent to live with friends of the Bidens in Delaware after the incidents.
Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton weighed in on Commander and his documented history of aggression.
“This is a special sort of craziness and corruption where a president would allow his dog to repeatedly attack and bite Secret Service and White House personnel,” said Mr. Fitton.
“And rather than protect its agents, the Secret Service tried to illegally hide documents about the abuse of its agents and officers by the Biden family.”
A brochure produced by the Washington Department of Health says: “Owned animals that have bitten must be brought to the shelter or taken to a licensed veterinarian for examination at the beginning and end of quarantine.”
Official Responses
Elizabeth Alexander, communications director for Ms. Biden, said in an email that the White House complex is a “unique and often stressful environment” for family pets and that the Biden family was “working through ways to make this situation better for everyone.”
Anthony Guglielmi, the chief spokesperson for the Secret Service, said in a separate email that his agency has for the past several presidents “navigated how best to operate around family pets and these incidents are no exception. We take the safety and well-being of our employees extremely seriously.”
At a White House press briefing on July 25, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responded to a question about Commander.
“As you all know the White House complex can be unique and very stressful and that is something I’m sure you all can understand,” said Ms. Jean-Pierre with a smile, and as laughter broke out in the room. “And as I just said, it is unique and it is stressful for all of us. So you can imagine what it’s like for a family pet.”
Ms. Jean-Pierre then referenced a statement that First Lady Jill Biden’s press secretary issued, saying the Bidens have “been partnering with the Secret Service and executive residence staff on additional leashing protocols and training, as well as establishing designated areas for Commander to run an exercise.”
Pets, especially dogs, have long been a fixture at the White House.
Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy had German shepherds as pets while serving as presidents.
