WASHINGTON: House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday removed the GOP chairman of the powerful House Intelligence Committee, who was a vocal supporter of assistance for Ukraine and held other views that put him at odds with President-elect Donald Trump.
\nJohnson told reporters late Wednesday that Rep. Mike Turner, an Ohio Republican, would no longer lead the committee, which oversees the nation\u2019s intelligence agencies and holds tremendous influence over law enforcement and foreign policy. During Trump\u2019s first term, the committee became a hotbed of partisanship as its powers were used to assist the then-president. Johnson last year also gave two Trump allies highly-sought spots on the panel.
\nJohnson said he made the decision to remove Turner because the \u201cintelligence community and everything related to (the committee) needs a fresh start.\u201d
\nThe Republican speaker, who has aligned himself closely with Trump, said he would soon announce the new chair for the committee.
\nJohnson went on to praise Turner and say he would play an important role in working with NATO. But Turner\u2019s stances on foreign policy had run afoul of the incoming president, who will take the White House next week with a vision of reshaping the federal government\u2019s intelligence and law enforcement capabilities. Trump has picked fierce loyalists to lead agencies with vast power for surveillance.
\nIn a statement, Turner said: \u201cUnder my leadership, we restored the integrity of the Committee and returned its mission to its core focus of national security. The threat from our adversaries is real and requires serious deliberations.\u201d
\nTurner last year also pushed back on Trump\u2019s false claims that Haitian migrants in his Ohio district were eating pets.
\nPunchbowl News first reported that Turner had been removed as the chair.
\nThe top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Jim Himes, in a statement called Turner \u201ca serious, security focused lawmaker dedicated at his core to the national security of the United States and to the thoughtful oversight of the Intelligence Community.\u201d
\nHimes added, \u201cThe removal of Chairman Turner makes our nation less secure and is a terrible portent for what\u2019s to come.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON: House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday removed the GOP chairman of the powerful House Intelligence Committee, who was a vocal supporter of assistance for Ukraine and held other views that put him at odds with President-elect Donald Trump. Johnson told reporters late Wednesday that Rep. Mike Turner, an Ohio Republican, would no longer lead […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":455769,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-455758","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n