Trump Urges Senators to Ask Sally Yates Who Leaked Classified Information
President Trump has offered a suggestion to a Senate subcommittee investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election that will hear testimony from former acting Attorney General Sally Yates. On Monday morning, Donald Trump tweeted:
Yates was famously fired by Trump after she broke with the president over the enforcement of his travel ban back in January. Trump is essentially accusing Yates of leaking information to the media on the day she is expected to testify. Trump wants the subcommittee to ask her about leaks, but her testimony about former national security adviser Michael Flynn could damage the president’s administration.
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Yates was a holdover from the Obama administration who was leading the department because Trump’s pick for Attorney General, Senator Jeff Session, had not yet been confirmed.
Yates told Trump administration staffers that Flynn could be a security risk after he discussed Russia sanctions with Russian ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak, according to CNN. If Yates confirms this under oath, it will contradict the version of events that has been repeated by the Trump administration.
Meanwhile, Trump blamed the Obama administration for giving Flynn the “highest security clearance” during his early morning Twitter session.
“The acting Attorney General, Sally Yates has betrayed the Department of Justice by refusing to enforce a legal order designed to protect the citizens of the United States,” the White House said in a statement after Yates was fired in January.
Yates’ hearing is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. ET on Capitol Hill.
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