Hours before Trump's election address, Dems warn against selective intelligence release
WASHINGTON, DC: Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee urged the nation's top intelligence officials on Thursday, July 16, to resist any attempt by President Donald Trump to selectively declassify intelligence they believe could mislead the public ahead of his highly anticipated election security address.
The unusual appeal underscored growing Democratic concern just hours before Trump's 9 pm Eastern speech. Lawmakers argued the stakes extend beyond the president's remarks and could affect confidence in future elections.
House Democrats urge spy chiefs to stand up
In a letter sent Thursday, July 16, morning to CIA Director John Ratcliffe, NSA Director Gen Joseph Rudd, FBI Director Kash Patel and acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte, Democrats called on intelligence leaders to "stand up" if Trump seeks to declassify material "intended to mislead."
The letter, spearheaded by the committee's top Democrat, Rep Jim Himes of Connecticut, warned that intelligence should not be selectively released to revive claims surrounding the 2020 presidential election.
"The facts of the 2020 election have long been settled," the lawmakers wrote. They pointed to a declassified 2021 Intelligence Community Assessment that concluded, "We have no indications that any foreign actor attempted to interfere in the 2020 US elections by altering any technical aspect of the voting process."
The letter added, "No intelligence to the contrary has ever been provided to the Committee, despite repeated requests for updates."
Trump has promised to announce "really big news" on election security during Thursday night's address, though the White House has released few details about what he plans to reveal.
Democrats question Trump's declassification plans
According to the Politico report, Trump and his advisers have been weighing whether to release classified information involving alleged vulnerabilities in US voting machines and Chinese efforts to influence voter perceptions while denigrating Trump during the 2020 election.
House Democrats argued that, if those reports prove accurate, the effort raises broader concerns.
"If true, this has the hallmarks of another transparent attempt to relitigiate debunked 2020 election conspiracies, sow doubt ahead of the 2026 midterms, and potentially lay the groundwork for an unprecedented assertion of federal power over the conduct of elections," the lawmakers wrote.
Election concerns deepen before Trump's address
The letter arrived a day after Trump's nominee to lead the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Jay Clayton, declined during his Senate confirmation hearing to say Joe Biden fairly won the 2020 election, a response that unsettled Democrats.
Lawmakers also noted recent election-related moves by the administration, including Trump's dismissal of the Election Assistance Commission's two Democratic commissioners and his continued push for the SAVE Act, which would require proof of citizenship and photo identification for voters while restricting mail-in voting.
The intelligence community's after-action review of the 2020 election concluded that China "considered but did not deploy" attempts to influence voter perceptions, while acknowledging some analysts disagreed, according to the report by Politico.
The report also noted that vulnerabilities in US voting machines have long been recognized by election officials, who maintain they can be mitigated.
Republicans, according to the report, are also privately worried about what Trump will say during Thursday night's speech.
