Speaking to Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo in an interview, President Donald Trump not only reiterated his claim that it was the Democrats who were behind the leak of the initial Defense Intelligence Agency report claiming that the B-2 bomber strikes on Iran’s nuclear program did little long-term damage, but vowed to prosecute them for it.
As background, someone leaked to CNN and the NYT the aforementioned DIA report, which was compiled shortly after the strike. It was later walked back, as more substantial intelligence on the efficacy of the strikes was garnered in the time after the attacks occurred. However, it was still the report that the MSM ran with in an attempt to make the president look bad.
It is currently unknown, at least officially, who leaked the classified and allegedly incorrect report, However, the president has claimed that the Democrats who received the intelligence briefing on the matter are behind the leak to the mainstream media outlets and thus should be prosecuted.
The president said as much in a Friday, June 27 post on his Truth Social platform, making the major accusation of illegality and calling for their prosecution, “The Democrats are the ones who leaked the information on the PERFECT FLIGHT to the Nuclear Sites in Iran. They should be prosecuted!”
So, when Trump sat for his interview with Bartiromo, she asked him about the matter. Beginning that line of questioning, she said, giving the president a good bit of room to make whatever point he wanted, “You tweeted that Democrats leaked intelligence…?” President Trump, adding no details but jumping right into it, said, “They should be prosecuted.”
The Fox News host then asked Trump if the specific people who leaked the report could be discovered so that they could be prosecuted, rather than just the vague and prosecutorily unhelpful accusation that “Democrats” did it. She asked, “Who specifically? Can we find out?”
The president argued that they can be found out, as the media could be forced to reveal their sources, the people behind the leak, for reasons of national security, given that the report was highly classified. He said, “We can find out easily. You go up and tell the reporter, ‘National security, who gave it?’ You have to do that.”
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Watch him here:
Interestingly, President Trump and Maria Bartiromo also commented on the matter of espionage and the People’s Republic of China. Beginning, Bartiromo noted that the PRC is behind much espionage and subversion in America, saying, “They hack into our telecom system, they’ve been stealing intellectual property, fentanyl, Covid, all of this stuff…”
President Trump, responding, noted that their are back-and-forth actions between Trump and Bartiromo, saying, “You don’t think we do that to them? You don’t think we do that to them? We do…” Bartiromo asked, “So that’s the way the world works?” The president noted, “That’s the way the world works. It’s a nasty world…”
Watch them here:
Featured image credit: base image from the embedded video