Trump White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said he was “absolutely stunned” as to why Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) published a cryptic message Wednesday urging President Biden to declassify information on a “serious national security threat.”
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and other members of Congress have reassured the public that the classified information in question does not pose an immediate threat to the country.
“I saw Chairman Turner’s statement on the issue and I want to assure the American people, there is no need for public alarm,” Johnson told reporters in the Capitol on Wednesday. “We are going to work together to address this matter, as we do all sensitive matters that are classified.”
Mulvaney told Blake Burman of “The Hill on NewsNation” that he couldn’t understand why Turner put out the message.
“I’m absolutely stunned by Mike Turner’s comment today, trying to figure out what good he was trying to accomplish,” Mulvaney said. “There’s no reason for Mike Turner to do this. If it was really serious and it’s a clear and present danger, to use a legal term, then you certainly wouldn’t want it to be public. There’s no reason to make this [statement] to declassify this.”
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) told Burman earlier Wednesday that the classified information Turner references in his message is not immediately dangerous.
“The information that I read isn’t going to cause me any clear and present alarms to the American people,” Donalds said. “Having read it, I’m glad I’m apprised of it. But in terms of do I feel it’s something actionable today? I don’t believe so.”
Mulvaney speculated as to why Turner may have put out the statement, connecting it to Turner’s support for Ukraine aid and the recent failure of efforts to fund aid for the country.
“That’s the only thing that seems to tie up with the facts so far, that Mike Turner wants more money for Ukraine, and he’s decided to do this to scare people into voting for it,” Mulvaney said. “And that is a stunning development, if it’s true, from the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.”
A bipartisan Senate bill to fund foreign policy initiatives, including Ukraine aid, has run into roadblocks in the House from conservatives, including Johnson. Some Democrats have signaled pursuing a discharge petition to bring the bill to a vote without Johnson’s approval, but it’s unclear whether the effort can get enough Republicans on board to move forward.
The Hill and NewsNation share a parent company, Nexstar Media Group.