Kellyanne Conway claims Trump knows Obama tapped his phones because 'he's the president of the United States'
Rather than give specifics on how exactly President Trump apparently knows former President Barack Obama wiretapped his phones, Trump counselor Kellyanne Conway decided to answer that question "globally" during her Monday morning interview on Fox & Friends. "He's the president of the United States," Conway said. "He has information and intelligence that the rest of us do not."
Since Trump tweeted the accusation against Obama on Saturday, neither he nor any other top government official has indicated what this "information and intelligence" may be. Obama's spokesman has dismissed the accusations as "simply false," and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has said that within his government agency there "was no such wiretap activity mounted against the president-elect at the time, or as a candidate, or against his campaign." FBI Director James Comey reportedly requested the Justice Department publicly disavow Trump's claims. Moreover, Trump reportedly "did not consult with the people inside the U.S. government who might know before making this claim," a senior U.S. official told NBC News.
Conway insisted all Trump wants is to get to the bottom of the matter. "The president's entire point is that people deserve to know," Conway said. "If we don't know, then let's find out together."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Catch a snippet of Conway's interview below. Becca Stanek
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
‘No Other Choice,’ ‘Dead Man’s Wire,’ and ‘Father Mother Sister Brother’Feature A victim of downsizing turns murderous, an angry Indiana man takes a lender hostage, and a portrait of family by way of three awkward gatherings
-
Political cartoons for January 11Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include green energy, a simple plan, and more
-
The launch of the world’s first weight-loss pillSpeed Read Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have been racing to release the first GLP-1 pill
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’