Lawmakers press for answers on Russian plot
Democrats and Republicans in Congress demanded Monday that American intelligence agencies promptly share with lawmakers what they know about a suspected Russian plot to pay bounties to the Taliban to kill American troops in Afghanistan, and they threatened to retaliate against the Kremlin.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, each requested that all lawmakers be briefed on the matter and for CIA and other intelligence officials to explain how President Donald Trump was informed of intelligence collected about the plot.
Mr. Trump insists he was not made aware of an intelligence assessment about the plot; officials have said that it was briefed to the highest levels of the White House and appeared in the president’s daily intelligence brief.
“Congress and the country need answers now,” Ms. Pelosi, D-Calif., wrote in a letter to John Ratcliffe, the director of national intelligence, and Gina Haspel, the CIA director. “Congress needs to know what the intelligencecommunity knows about this significant threat to American troops and our allies and what options are available to hold Russia accountable.”
In the Republican-controlled Senate, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said he had asked for information as well and expected to know more on the matter “in the coming days.”
“We’ve known for a long time that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is a thug and a murderer, and if these allegations are true, I will work with President Trump on a strong response,” Mr. Inhofe said in a statement. “My No. 1 priority is the safety of our troops. Right now, though, we need answers.”
The CIA declined to comment on Ms. Pelosi’s request.
Members of Congress were caught off-guard Friday when The New York Times first reported that American intelligence had found that a Russian military intelligence unit had secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants in exchange for killing American troops and their allies in Afghanistan. National Security Council officials met in March to discuss the intelligence, but the White House has taken no known action in response.
The Times further reported Sunday that American intelligences officers and Special Operations forces in the country had informed their superiors of the suspected Russian plot as early as January, after a large amount of American cash was seized in a raid on a Taliban outpost.
American officials believed that the death of at least one U.S. service member was tied to the bounties, and they are reviewing other combat casualties in search of other potential victims, officials familiar with the matter have said.
The White House has not challenged that the intelligence assessment exists or that the National Security Council held an interagency meeting about it in late March.
But Mr. Trump and his press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, have both repeatedly claimed that he was not briefed on the intelligence report. Mr. Trump tweeted late Sunday that “Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me” or Vice President Mike Pence.
Ms. McEnany said
Monday that Mr. Trump still had not been briefed on the intelligence, but she confirmed that the White House planned to brief select members of Congress on the matter Monday afternoon, the Associated Press reported.
“There is no consensus within the intelligence community on these allegations and in effect there are dissenting opinions from some in the intelligence community with regards to the veracity of what’s being reported and the veracity of the underlying allegations continue to be evaluated,” Ms. McEnany said.
Lawmakers were left uncertain what to believe, and even loyal members of Mr. Trump’s party sounded uneasy Monday when asked about the president’s statements.
Rep. Mac Thornberry of Texas, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said Mr. Trump’s tweet suggesting he had not been made aware of the reports was “a very concerning statement.”
“Anything with any hint of credibility that would endanger our service members, much less put a bounty on their lives, to me should have been briefed immediately to the commander in chief and a plan to deal with that situation,” Mr. Thornberry said.