Speaker Johnson removes the chairman of the powerful House Intelligence Committee
WASHINGTON (AP) – House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday fired the GOP chairman of the powerful House Intelligence Committee, who has been a vocal supporter of aid to Ukraine and held other views that put him at odds with President-elect Donald Trump.
Johnson told reporters late Wednesday that Representative Mike Turner, Ohio Republican, will no longer chair the committee, which oversees the nation's intelligence agencies and has a major influence on law enforcement and foreign policy. During Trump's first term, this committee became a center of partisanship as its power was used to help the former president at the time. Johnson last year also offered two of Trump's most sought-after spots on the panel.
Johnson said he decided to remove Turner because “the intelligence community and everything related to (the committee) needs a fresh start.”
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The Republican speaker, who has closely aligned himself with Trump, said he would soon announce a new chairman of the committee.
Johnson went on to praise Turner and said that he will play an important role in cooperation with NATO. But Turner's stance on foreign policy is at odds with the incoming president, who will enter the White House next week with a vision to reshape the federal government's intelligence and law enforcement capabilities. Trump has chosen fierce loyalists to lead agencies with massive surveillance powers.
In a statement, Turner said: “Under my leadership, we have restored the integrity of the Committee and returned its mission to its national security focus. The threat from our enemies is real and requires serious discussions. “
Last year Turner also pushed back on Trump's false allegation that Haitian immigrants in his Ohio state were eating pets.
Punchbowl News first reported that Turner had been removed as chairman.
The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Jim Himes, in a statement called Turner “an honest, security-oriented attorney dedicated to the national security of the United States and thoughtful oversight of the Intelligence Community.”
Himes added, “Chairman Turner's removal makes our nation insecure and bodes ill for what's to come.”
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Associated Press writer Farnoush Amiri contributed.
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