Paul Ryan says Trump "trolling" people on removing security clearances
House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters on Tuesday that President Trump appears to be "trolling" people after the White House suggested that the president was exploring the idea of pulling the security clearances of some former intelligence chiefs over their differing views of Russia's role in the election.
"I think he is trolling people, honestly," said Ryan. He added, "This is something that's in the purview of the executive branch, I think some of these people have lost their security clearances, some people keep their clearance that's something the executive branch deals with, that's not really in our purview."
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters on Monday that Mr. Trump is considering removing the clearances of Obama intelligence officials, including FBI Director James Comey, former CIA director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former Director of National Security Agency Michael Hayden, former National Security Adviser Susan Rice and former Deputy Director of the FBI Andrew McCabe.
She claimed that the officials are "politicizing" government agencies and "monetizing" their political offices.
Questions still remain if the president does in fact support the intelligence community's findings that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election after a swath of Republicans, including Speaker Ryan, refuted the president's previous claims made during his summit in Helsinki, Finland that the U.S. was partially to blame for interference.
Asked if he was comfortable with Mr. Trump once again sitting down with Russian President Vladimir Putin after the White House said Mr. Trump asked National Security Adviser John Bolton to invite him for a visit in the fall, Ryan the Congress certainly "will not be giving him an invitation to do a joint session."
"That's something we do for allies," he added. Ryan said he's comfortable with presidents sitting down for one-on-one's with foreign leaders, but what matters is "the message."
"If the message is stop meddling in our country, stop violating our sovereignty then i support that but its the message, it's the counts."
Ryan added, "We can always be firmer on that message."