The White House is accusing the Democratic Party of strategically releasing classified information for political advantage.
President Trump is advocating for the prosecution of opposition members he believes are responsible for leaking classified details about recent US strikes against Iranian nuclear sites. These strikes, which targeted three facilities, followed earlier actions by Israel.
While the Trump administration insists the Iranian targets were “obliterated,” CNN and other news sources, citing a preliminary intelligence assessment, reported only moderate damage, even with the alleged use of bunker buster bombs.
”The Democrats leaked information about the PERFECT FLIGHT to the Nuclear Sites in Iran and should be prosecuted!” Trump stated on Truth Social.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard accused “the propaganda media” of trying to discredit the president by publishing “illegally leaked classified intelligence assessments.” Trump accused media outlets of spreading “fake news” about what he views as a significant security achievement.
According to Axios, the White House suspects individuals in Congress leaked the Defense Intelligence Agency’s assessment, created about a day after the airstrikes. The administration shared the assessment with lawmakers via the secure CAPNET system on Monday.
”Almost immediately after we put the information on CAPNET, it leaks,” an administration source told Axios.
”The intelligence community is working to improve its processes to prevent ‘Deep State’ actors from leaking ‘low confidence’ portions of intelligence analysis to the media,” a senior White House official said, referring to the agency’s labeling of its conclusions. The White House reportedly plans to limit intelligence-sharing with Congress.
Several Democratic legislators have criticized Trump for not informing them about the operation beforehand. The White House postponed a classified after-action briefing to Congress, initially scheduled for Tuesday, and held it on Thursday, led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Public comments after the briefing highlighted partisan disagreements. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said “obliteration” was an accurate description of the strikes, while Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy accused Trump of “misleading the public.”
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