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President Trump Allegedly Disclosed Classified Info to Russian Officials

  • Veronica Neffinger

    Veronica Neffinger wrote her first poem at age seven and went on to study English in college, focusing on 18th century literature. When she is not listening to baseball games, enjoying the…

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  • Updated May 16, 2017

U.S. officials have alleged that President Trump revealed highly classified information to the Russian foreign minister and ambassador in a meeting at the White House last week.

According to The Washington Post, the information had to do with "a critical source of intelligence on the Islamic State."

The information was disclosed to U.S. officials and the President via an intelligence-sharing arrangement. The partner in that arrangement did not give the U.S. permission to share the information with Russia.

One U.S. official even stated that, in this disclosure, Trump “revealed more information to the Russian ambassador than we have shared with our own allies.”

Some, like conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, have questioned whether the story is true, but have noted that if it is, “it is very bad.” Others have noted that the leak would not be inconsistent with Trump’s way of conducting the office of president.

“I do think it’s entirely plausible,” writes Jonah Goldberg at the National Review. “But the idea that Trump — with his irrepressible need to boast to the point of narcissistic incontinence combined with his lackadaisical approach to the nuts-and-bolts demands of the job — somehow just let something slip is utterly and completely believable. It was apparently believable to various members of his own administration.”

The issue of the President’s relationship with Russia has been a recurring one throughout his four months in office. Last week, controversy erupted after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey in the midst of an FBI investigation into Trump’s possible ties to Russia.

 

Photo: President Donald Trump speaks on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Oval Office of the White House, January 28, 2017 in Washington, DC. Also pictured, from left, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, Vice President Mike Pence, White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, and Press Secretary Sean Spicer. 

Photo courtesy: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Publication date: May 16, 2017