On Saturday Feb. 3rd, the United States shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon in South Carolina. The decision to take action followed weeks of consternation from citizens as the balloon flew high over the U.S. President Biden, in a statement, said he had been briefed on the matter Wednesday, and ordered the balloon be shot down "as soon as possible" but was advised that the "best time to do that was when it got over water" due to safety concerns.

The Chinese foreign ministry declared its "strong discontent and protest" about the U.S.’s decision in a statement, asserting that officials in Washington stated that the balloon posed no military threat. In response, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island said President Biden made the right decision and called for a full briefing on the situation. Meanwhile, Republican representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and James Comer took to Twitter to