According to U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby, the White House is aware of the situation despite the Pentagon's refusal to say if it used a $400,000 missile to shoot down a $12 balloon.
Inquiries about whether one of the unexplained objects the Pentagon fired down off the coast of Alaska earlier this month was a $12 hobby balloon are being met with obstinate denials from the Pentagon.
Last week, after a group devoted to the pastime, reported one of its balloons "missing in action" above Alaska, speculation that the unidentified aerial item the administration shot down earlier this month was actually a cheap hobbyist pico balloon started to grow.
In a blog post, the Northern Illinois Bottlecap Balloon Brigade (NIBBB) described how it had lost communication with its hobby balloon on February 11 and how it had last been seen off the coast of Alaska at a height of roughly 39,000 feet.
Little mylar balloons called "pico ball...