House Intel chair calls on Biden to declassify details on ‘serious national security threat’

by Rebecca Beitsch - 02/14/24 12:41 PM ET

House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio) made a cryptic call for President Biden to declassify information about a “serious national security threat” to allow for public discussions about how the U.S. should respond.

But Turner’s call was largely out of step with other voices in Congress who said the matter, while serious, was no call for alarm.

The ranking member on the panel, Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), said it was not one of great urgency and that “people should not panic.”

“Today, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has made available to all Members of Congress information concerning a serious national security threat,” Turner said in the statement.

“I am requesting that President Biden declassify all information relating to this threat so that Congress, the Administration, and our allies can openly discuss the actions necessary to respond to this threat.”

Late Tuesday, Turner sent a “Dear Colleague” letter noting the committee voted to make information about “an urgent matter with regard to a destabilizing foreign military capability that should be known by all Congressional Policy Makers.”

Lawmakers are invited to the committee’s sensitive compartmented information facility space to review the information over the rest of the week, according to the letter obtained by The Hill.

But lawmakers were mum about the contents of the intelligence amid reports it related to the potential for Russian aggression from space.

ABC News reported Wednesday that the intelligence concerned Russian plans to use nuclear weapons in space to target U.S. satellites.

CNN also reported Wednesday that the intelligence in question relates to Russia, while Politico reported Tuesday that it’s related to space.

Turner, who often sends statements in conjunction with Himes, did not do so Wednesday.

Himes held back criticism of Turner but said, “Thanks, Mike,” when a reporter noted the panic being caused by the statement.

“Look, Mike is right to highlight this issue. But it’s so sensitive that [we’re] right now not publicly discussing. And I don’t want people thinking that, you know, Martians are landing or that your Wednesday is going to be ruined. But it’s something that the Congress the administration does need to address in the medium to long run,” Himes said.

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During a White House briefing Wednesday, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said he was “surprised” Turner sought to go public with the information while the White House was organizing a briefing.

“I reached out earlier this week to the Gang of Eight to offer myself up for a personal briefing for the Gang of Eight and scheduled a briefing for the four House members for tomorrow,” Sullivan said.

“All I can tell you is I’m focused on going to see him, sit with him as well as the other House members of the Gang of Eight,” he added.

“This administration has gone further and in more creative, more strategic ways dealt with the declassification of intelligence in the interest of the United States than any administration in history.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said there was no need for “alarm.”

“I saw Chairman Turner’s statement on the issue and I want to assure the American people, there is no need for public alarm,” he 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.”

Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), an Intel member, echoed that sentiment.

“There’s a lot of very volatile things that we have to address. This is one of them. This is something that requires our attention — there’s no doubt,” Crow said. “It’s not an immediate crisis, but something we have to be very serious about.”

Senate Intelligence officials also downplayed the immediacy, saying they had been “rigorously tracking this issue from the start.”

“The Senate Intelligence Committee has the intelligence in question, and has been rigorously tracking this issue from the start,” Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.) and ranking member Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said in a joint statement.

“We continue to take this matter seriously and are discussing an appropriate response with the administration,” they wrote. “In the meantime, we must be cautious about potentially disclosing sources and methods that may be key to preserving a range of options for U.S. action.”

Turner’s announcement falls amid debate over whether to reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows for the warrantless surveillance of noncitizens located abroad.

A bill to reauthorize the program could reach the House floor as soon as Thursday, with privacy advocates in Congress lobbying hard to amend the bill to include a warrant requirement that is strongly opposed by the intelligence community.

Turner’s announcement spurred skepticism from proponents of a warrant requirement.

“Bizarre timing considering we are trying to end warrantless government surveillance this week,” Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) wrote on X.

And Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) called Turner a “spy guy” in questioning the timing of his call.

“Very interested to learn about this threat,” he wrote on X.

“Also very interested to know why the spy guys are raising mysterious alarms right before we’re about to reform illegal domestic surveillance under FISA.”

Mychael Schnell and Brett Samuels contributed. Updated at 3:45 p.m.

Tags House Intelligence Committee Jake Sullivan Jason Crow Jim Himes Joe Biden Marco Rubio Mike Johnson Mike Turner