‘National Security Threat’ Designed to Foment Support for Ukraine Bill, Experts Say

On Wednesday, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-Ohio) issued an enigmatic statement requesting that President Biden “declassify all information” related to a “serious national security threat,” without specifying the nature of the threat. After sources later revealed that the “threat” was in reference to intelligence reports that Russia is pursuing putting nuclear weapons in space that could potentially destroy vital U.S. satellites, experts and lawmakers say Turner’s statement appears to be intentionally timed to fuel urgency for the House to pass the controversial Ukraine funding bill.

During Wednesday’s edition of “Washington Watch,” Family Research Council President Tony Perkins noted the puzzling nature of Turner’s statement. “[T]his seems a little odd that a member of Congress, chairman of the Intelligence Committee, would say, ‘We have information,’ but then not provide any details.”

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Jerry Boykin, FRC’s vice president and a 36-year Army veteran, agreed, observing that the vagueness of the statement could have been intentional in order to provoke fear. “[I]t’s very bizarre. … [I]f you don’t know what [the ‘threat’] is, then you’ve got something to be afraid of. On the other hand, if you have some general idea of what it is and you can mentally dissect it, you may be able to figure it out.”

John Daniel Davidson, senior editor at The Federalist, further pointed to the suspicious timing of Turner’s statement. “[C]onsider the timing of the panic provocations, which came almost immediately after House Speaker Mike Johnson said he and other Republicans weren’t going to be ‘rushed’ into approving the $61 billion aid package for Ukraine.” Johnson previously stated that the House “will have to continue to work its own will” on addressing the border crisis, since the Senate’s Ukraine aid bill did not include any provisions to secure the porous southern border. “America deserves better than the Senate’s status quo,” Johnson emphasized.

Davidson went on to highlight a quote by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who “issued a helpful statement clarifying what all this was really about: ‘The most urgent national security threat facing the American people right now is the possibility that Congress abandons Ukraine and allows Vladimir Putin’s Russia to win.’”

For his part, Speaker Johnson gave no indication on Wednesday that the “serious national security threat” would affect the House’s actions regarding the Ukraine aid bill. “I saw Chairman Turner’s statement on the issue, and I want to assure the American people, there is no need for public alarm,” he said. “We are going to work together to address this matter, as we do all sensitive matters that are classified.”

“We just want to assure everyone: Steady hands are at the wheel, we’re working on it, and there’s no need for alarm,” Johnson added.

Meanwhile, fellow Republicans in the House are also questioning the motives behind Turner’s statement. “This revelation by the chairman was done with a reckless disregard of the implications and consequences said information would have on geopolitics, domestic and foreign markets, and the well-being and psyche of the American people,” Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) wrote on Thursday.

“In hindsight, it has become clear that the intent was not to ensure the safety of our homeland and the American people, but rather to ensure additional funding for Ukraine and passage of an unreformed Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA),” Ogles continued. “This act constituted poor judgment at a minimum and a complete breach of trust influenced by the pursuit of a political agenda at the maximum.”