Trump, adviser defend disclosures to Russians
WASHINGTON — The White House on Tuesday defended as “wholly appropriate” President Donald Trump’s disclosure of classified information to senior Russian officials last week.
Trump, meanwhile, tried to beat back criticism from fellow Republicans and calm international allies.
The highly classified information about an Islamic State plot was collected by Israel, a source of intelligence and a close partner of the U.S. in the Middle East.
In a series of morning tweets, Trump declared he has “the absolute right” as president to share “facts pertaining to terrorism” and airline safety with Russia. Although top aides on Monday had declared reports about Trump’s discussions false, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster on Tuesday sought instead to downplay the significance of the information Trump revealed. The president had been engaging in “routine sharing” with foreign leaders, he said, arguing that some of the information was publicly available.
It is unusual for a president to share such information
consent of the country that collected it. Countries typically form intelligence-sharing agreements on the basis of confidentiality.
A U.S. official who confirmed the disclosure said the revelation potentially put the source at risk.
The U.S. official said Trump shared with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak details about an Islamic State terror threat related to the use of laptop computers on aircraft. The official said the disclosure came as Trump boasted about his access to classified intelligence. An excerpt from an official transcript of the meeting reveals that Trump told them: “I get great intel. I have people brief me on great intel every day.”
The White House vowed to track down those who disclosed Trump’s private conversations in the Oval Office.
Coming days before Trump’s first trip abroad, the president’s actions raised questions about his standing with world leaders and led some countries to start second-guessing their own intelligence-sharing agreements with the U.S.
In a statement, Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Ron Dermer, said the partnership between the U.S. and Israel was solid. The New York Times first reported that Israel was the source of the information. The news of Trump sharing intelligence with the Russians was first reported by The Washington Post.
“Israel has full confidence in our intelligence sharing relationship with the United States and looks forward to deepening that relationship in the years ahead under President Trump,” Dermer said.
But other nations appeared to be reconsidering. A senior European intelligence official said his country might stop sharing information with the U.S. if it confirms that Trump shared classified details with Russian officials. Such sharing “could be a risk for our sources,” the official said. The official spoke only on condition that neither he nor his country be identified, because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
After he spoke with the Russians, Trump was informed that he had broken protocol, and White House officials placed calls to the National Security Agency and the CIA looking to minimize any damage. The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and thus spoke on condition of anonymity, would not say which country’s intelligence was divulged, but the Times and other outlets reported Tuesday that Israel was the source.
Trump’s tweets tried to calm critics after the news that he had shared “codeword” information, which refers to one of the highest classification levels used by American spy agencies, during the meeting last week. Trump described his talks with the Russians as “an openly scheduled” meeting.
The gathering was closed to all U.S. media, although a photographer for the Russian state-owned news agency was allowed into the Oval Office.
“As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety,” Trump wrote Tuesday morning. “Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.” ISIS is an acronym for the Islamic State.
On Tuesday, McMaster, in a White House briefing, cast some of Trump’s revelations as information that was available from publicly available “open-source reporting” and added that the president did not know the precise source of the intelligence he had shared. He appeared to be suggesting that Trump had not knowingly compromised a confidential source, but the statement also indicated that the president had not asked his advisers for detailed inforwithout
mation about the intelligence report he had received.
“In the context of that discussion, what the president discussed with the foreign minister was wholly appropriate to that conversation and is consistent with the routine sharing of information between the president and any leaders with whom he is engaged,” McMaster said.
The president has broad authority to declassify information. Such disclosures to the Russians would have been illegal, however, had just about anyone else in government shared the same information.
LAWMAKERS REACT
On Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats alike expressed concern. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called the reports “deeply disturbing” and said they could affect the willingness of U.S. allies and partners to share intelligence with the U.S.
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., called for Congress to have immediate access to a transcript of Trump’s meeting with the Russians, saying that if Trump refuses, Americans will doubt that their president is capable of safeguarding critical secrets.
“Revealing classified information at this level is extremely dangerous and puts at risk the lives of Americans and those who gather intelligence for our country,” Schumer said in a statement. “The President owes the intelligence community, the American people, and Congress a full explanation.”
As senators gathered, members of both parties said they were worried about the developing story. The House was not in session Monday evening.
“Obviously, they are in a downward spiral right now and have got to figure out a way to come to grips with all that’s happening,” Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said Monday night of the Trump administration. “The chaos that is being created by the lack of discipline is creating an environment that I think makes — it creates a worrisome environment.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell paused and answered simply “no” when asked Tuesday whether he had concerns about the president’s ability to properly handle classified information in the wake of the revelations. The Kentucky Republican again said “no” when asked whether he was losing confidence in the president.
But while a number of prominent GOP senators displayed anxiety and displeasure, Republicans did not appear poised to abandon a president who remains critical to their goals of acting on health care and tax legislation. Several went to his defense and sought to close ranks.
“There isn’t anybody who can run the White House without criticism,” said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah. “This man has been subject to more criticism than any predecessor that I know of. They hate him, they didn’t like the fact that he won, he beat their favorite, it was a remarkable election.”
Trump ignored reporters’ questions about whether he disclosed classified information. After a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Trump said only that his meeting last week with Lavrov was “very, very successful.”
The controversy left White House staff members on edge. The communications team, in particular, has received sharp criticism from the president as well as his son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner. Trump has told advisers he’s aware of a need to make changes to his White House
team, though it was unclear what those moves might be or whether any were imminent.
Coming days before Trump’s first trip abroad, the president’s actions raised questions about his standing with world leaders and led some countries to start second-guessing their own intelligencesharing agreements with the U.S.