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MAGA lawmaker accuses Mike Johnson of ‘brainwashing’ him with intelligence briefing
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), endorsed by Donald Trump, explained that he was supporting Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) ouster because the lawmaker had betrayed Republicans' principles on a foreign surveillance law.
On Monday, Massie told podcast host Charlie Kirk that Johnson had orchestrated a "brainwashing session" in the form of a classified briefing to push through the reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
"It was like a brainwashing session," Massie asserted. "And here's the thing, Charlie, when you go into a [sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF)], remember most congressmen are used to having two things with them that allow them to verify something if they're being told a lie.
"Number one, they usually have their smartphone with them. And their staff," he continued. "Those two things you are deprived of.
ALSO READ: Revealed: What government officials privately shared about Trump not disclosing finances
"So if you are deprived of those two things and any connection to anybody for three or four hours, you kind of start believing what they're saying, and you think, well, maybe they'll let me out of this SCIF if I just nod my head and succumb to the pressure."
However, the "brainwashing session" did not convince Massie to support the bill.
"I slept on it three nights, and then I came to the GOP conference at the beginning of this past week, and I stood up in front of everybody, and I told Mike Johnson he needed to resign and that I was co-sponsoring Marjorie Taylor Greene's motion to vacate," he recalled.
The House passed the FISA reauthorization bill earlier this month after an initial failure. The 273-147 bipartisan vote came with 59 Republicans and 88 Democrats opposing it. Trump had urged Republicans to kill the legislation.
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on Saturday.
National News
Trump’s legal team just accidentally ‘undercut’ his previous claims in documents case
Donald Trump's legal team has been working overtime to force Special Counsel Jack Smith to make public his prosecution team's evidence against the former president in the criminal documents case, and they just had a victory... sort of.
Recently, Judge Aileen Cannon unsealed several documents in the Florida criminal case, resulting in a trove of new revelations. One of those newly disclosed details was that Walt Nauta, Trump's valet and co-defendant in the case, previously told a grand jury that his boss would throw papers "on the floor" when he "would leave for the evening."
But those filings also showed some information that "undercuts" Trump's claims in the case, according to a report from ABC.
ALSO READ: Revealed: What government officials privately shared about Trump not disclosing finances
"A coat hanger or 'very tiny screwdriver' could be used to unlock the Mar-a-Lago storage room where former President Donald Trump stored highly classified documents for more than a year, according to a witness in Special Counsel Jack Smith's investigation," it states. "The account was relayed to FBI agents by an unidentified aide to Trump in January 2023, according to newly released exhibits, and further undercuts claims by Trump that the highly-classified materials he's accused of taking with him after leaving office were secured at all times."
The report further notes the origin of the crucial release.
"The transcript of the interview was released as part of an ongoing effort by Trump and his co-defendants to make additional evidence gathered by Special Counsel Smith public," it reads.
ABC notes that the reported detail "further bolsters concerns raised by Smith about the lack of security surrounding the documents while they were stored in Mar-a-Lago."
"In his indictment of Trump, he included photos showing boxes believed to have contained classified documents in a ballroom at the club as well as a bathroom," it reported.
