Maguire says he was not directed to withhold whistleblower complaint from Congress
Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire testified Thursday he went to the White House first after receiving the whistleblower complaint about President Trump but said he was never directed to withhold it from Congress.
During a House Intelligence Committee hearing, Maguire clarified the timeline of events under questioning by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who asked if the "first party" his office went to after receiving the whistleblower complaint was the White House. Maguire confirmed his team first went to the White House's Office of Legal Counsel before going to the Department of Justice's Department of Legal Counsel.
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.
Later in the testimony, Maguire would not say whether he spoke with Trump about the whistleblower complaint. He did testify, however, that he was not directed to withhold the complaint and that it was not his "intent" to keep it from Congress.
"I was endeavoring to get the executive privilege concerns addressed so that it can then be forwarded," he said. "It was not stonewalling. I did not receive direction from anybody."
Schiff took issue with this, saying whistleblower complaints are "always given to our committee," but Maguire argued that seeing as this complaint involved the president and not a member of the intelligence community, this situation was "unprecedented." Brendan Morrow
-
Did Alex Pretti’s killing open a GOP rift on guns?Talking Points Second Amendment groups push back on the White House narrative
-
The 8 best hospital dramas of all timethe week recommends From wartime period pieces to of-the-moment procedurals, audiences never tire of watching doctors and nurses do their lifesaving thing
-
‘Implementing strengthened provisions help advance aviation safety’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
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
