Sen. Mark Warner – Clashed with Trump administration intelligence officials, who claimed that information on US war plans for Yemen did not include intelligence information.
Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence, initially declined to say whether she was a party in a Signal group chat exposed by Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, who was apparently inadvertently included in the group.
Gabbard repeatedly stated that she was “not going to get into” the issue, telling Warner that it was “currently under review.” However, CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed that he was in the group chat.
However, the two sparred with Warner, rebuffing his demands to turn over the Signal messages amid concerns about whether they contained classified information. The Trump administration has repeatedly warned that it will crack down on classified information leaks.
“Senator, I will reiterate that there was no classified material that was shared,” she responded.
Goldberg described the sharing of “operational details” such as which targets the US would strike, classified information, and an intelligence officer’s name.
“If there is no classified material, please share it with the committee. “You can not have it both ways,” Warner informed Gabbard.
“These are important positions. This is our national security bobbing and weaving while attempting to filibuster.”
Warner then noted that Gabbard had recently stated on social media that “unauthorized release of classified information is a violation of the law and will be treated as such.”
Gabbard responded, “There is a distinction between inadvertent release and careless, sloppy, malicious leaks of classified information. The second point is that no classified information was “shared.”
Ratcliffe told lawmakers that his use of Signal to discuss the plans was authorized, addressing another point of contention raised in the wake of Goldberg’s report.
“When I was confirmed as CIA director, Signal was installed on my computer at the agency, as it is for most CIA officers. Senator, one of the first things I was briefed on by CIA records management was the use of Signal as a permissible work use,” Ratcliffe Said.
