A conservative lawmaker demanded Thursday that House Speaker Mike Johnson open an inquiry into House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chair Mike Turner’s revelation of a classified national security threat.
Rep. Andy Ogles, Tennessee Republican, urged the speaker to open a probe into the impact of Mr. Turner’s call for President Biden to go public with a national security threat that caught lawmakers and the White House by surprise on Wednesday.
The White House confirmed that Russia is developing a space-based military capability that poses a national security threat, but insisted there is no immediate danger to the U.S.
The lawmaker accused Mr. Turner of having a “reckless disregard” for the reverberations his move could have on geopolitics, domestic and foreign markets, and the public response to the revelation of a so-called “serious national security threat.”
“Mr. Speaker, it is with great reticence that I formally request an inquiry as to any impact the chairman’s statements may have had on U.S. foreign and domestic policy,” Mr. Ogles wrote.
He also said Mr. Turner’s post is “under your direct purview, [and] should the Chairman retain his post, you have a duty and an obligation to reassure this body and the American people that the processes of the Intelligence Committee have not been corrupted by the very institutions they are charged with monitoring.”
SEE ALSO: Russia dismisses ‘unfounded’ Hill speculation over space threat
Mr. Turner, who has said the threat was so urgent that all lawmakers and the public, and U.S. allies, should be told about it, fired back at Mr. Ogles.
He said that the intelligence panel worked directly with the White House to notify Congress of the threat.
“The House Intelligence Committee voted 23 to 1 to make this information available to Members of Congress. White House officials confirmed that, in their view, the matter was ’serious,’” Mr. Turner said on X.
Following Mr. Turner’s revelation, the speaker sought to temper public fervor by claiming that the national security threat was of no cause for public alarm.
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan would not say whether the public should be worried, but noted that the lawmaker’s reveal came on the eve of a planned closed-door meeting with the so-called Gang of Eight, a bipartisan group of high-ranking senators and House members who can be briefed on sensitive intelligence matters.
Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, is set to meet with Mr. Sullivan, along with Mr. Turner, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, New York Democrat, and House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Jim Himes, Connecticut Democrat, to discuss the threat on Thursday.
SEE ALSO: White House confirms Russian ‘space’ threat, says there’s no immediate danger
Mr. Turner’s statement came amid heated debate on reauthorizing the government’s spying powers, and after Mr. Johnson has refused to bring the Senate’s $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan to the floor for a vote.
Mr. Ogles suggested that his colleague’s move was meant to bolster passage of Ukraine aid and reforms to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which has been mired in an ongoing dispute between warring House panels on how to best deal with concerns about Americans’ privacy.
“In hindsight, it has become clear that the intent was not to ensure the safety of our homeland and the American people, but rather to ensure additional funding for Ukraine and passage of an unreformed Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act,” Mr. Ogles said. “This act constituted poor judgment at a minimum and a complete breach of trust influenced by the pursuit of a political agenda at a maximum.”
In a twist, Mr. Ogles admitted to Politico that he had not gone to a closed-door meeting meant for lawmakers to review the classified material, arguing that just because he didn’t go to the meeting doesn’t mean he did not know what was going on inside.
Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that Mr. Ogles needed to “check himself.”
“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, like it’s absurd,” Mr. Crenshaw, Texas Republican, said. “It’s a deeply absurd action. I’m tired of people making extremely passionate, opinionated actions based on new knowledge.”
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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