Red flags shot up yesterday at the White House following a leak revealing that President Trump decided against the advice of his aides, and gave a congratulatory phone call to Russian President Vladimir Putin following his election win. His aides urged Trump not to congratulate Putin.
I called President Putin of Russia to congratulate him on his election victory (in past, Obama called him also). The Fake News Media is crazed because they wanted me to excoriate him. They are wrong! Getting along with Russia (and others) is a good thing, not a bad thing…….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 21, 2018
It’s particularly concerning that this information was leaked because it means there’s a leaker close to Trump. Only a small circle of staff members would have had access to such sensitive briefing documents, meaning the leak may have come from somebody close to the president.
While it’s unclear whether the White House has launched a formal investigation into the incident yet, according to the Washington Examiner, Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., a conservative leader and foreign policy expert, expressed outrage at the leak and suggested that it and others thought to come from the national security council are crimes.
“Here’s the big deal. If you’ve got the national security council team leaking to the press, that’s a big deal,” he told reporters at a Heritage Foundation-sponsored “Conversations with Conservatives” on Capitol Hill Wednesday.
“Quite frankly, some of the other stuff they’ve leaked is actually a crime,” he added.
“I’m probably more concerned about leaks within the administration. You have to understand that it would be like my chief of staff leaking information that we had in a conversation on anything. Whether it’s [Trump’s call] appropriate or not appropriate, there’s a bigger concern there within the West Wing if you’ve got people on the national security team that have leaked. That’s where it had to have come from. It’s a very small group of people that would of even had any knowledge of that,” he said.
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Illegal or not, if someone is on the national security team and leaking Presidential talking points, they’re clearly attempting to sabotage Trump.
Whoever did leak this classified information should be fired immediately. The president, regardless of their political party, should have aides that he can trust at all times. Anyone who is not loyal to President Trump, and to keeping classified information within the walls of the White House, does not belong in the West Wing.
Share this story if you think the White House leaker should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law!
