A Republican congressman accidentally leaked classified information while railing against leaks


A New Yorker report has found that shortly after railing about leaks Monday, House Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) stumbled into discussing classified information in a public setting himself. During the committee's hearing concerning Russia's involvement in the 2016 presidential election, Nunes emphasized his concern about White House leaks: "Who has leaked classified information?" he demanded. "We aim to determine who has leaked or facilitated leaks of classified information so that these individuals can be brought to justice."
Later, in that same public hearing, Nunes asked FBI Director James Comey, "Do Russians historically prefer Republicans to win over Democrats?" Comey quickly shut Nunes down: "I'm not going to discuss in an unclassified forum," he said. Nunes had accidentally veered too far into publicly discussing classified information.
Then New York Rep. Peter King (R) followed up:
Subscribe to 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.
"I would just say on that because again, we're not going into the classified sections, that indicating that historically Russians have supported Republicans, and I know that language is there, to me puts somewhat of a cloud over the entire report," King said.I didn't notice it at the time, though I was in the room, and the C-SPAN video of the hearing doesn't capture it, but Democrats told me there was, at this point, minor commotion on the dais. King had just revealed that the classified version of the report had concluded "that historically Russians have supported Republicans." [The New Yorker]
King later told The New Yorker: "I have to watch myself. I think it was in the public report that came out, the unclassified report, that there was a finding in there that historically — so don't quote me on this, okay? Because I'm not sure if this was the classified or the unclassified, but there was a conclusion that historically the Russians have favored Republicans." The conclusion was not reached in the public report, The New Yorker notes — and King's slip of the tongue could spark a serious debate, as it could indicate whether Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted President Trump in particular elected, or simply favored Trump's party.
Read the full report — and why the opposite conclusion might in fact be true — at The New Yorker.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Trump uses tariffs to upend Brazil's domestic politics
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By slapping a 50% tariff on Brazil for its criminal investigation into Bolsonaro, the Trump administration is brazenly putting its fingers on the scales of a key foreign election
-
3 questions to ask when deciding whether to repair or replace your broken appliance
the explainer There may be merit to fixing what you already have, but sometimes buying new is even more cost-effective
-
'Trump's authoritarian manipulation of language'
Instant Opinion Vienna has become a 'convenient target for populists' | Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling