Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Just Ripped Jared Kushner Over Reports That He's Communicating With Russia Via WhatsApp, and It's Peak AOC

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Just Ripped Jared Kushner Over Reports That He's Communicating With Russia Via WhatsApp, and It's Peak AOC
@thehill/Twitter

Boom.

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) on Tuesday tore into Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law and policy advisor, over his reported secret communications with foreign leaders using the encrypted messaging platform WhatsApp.

CNN reported in October that Kushner had been using WhatsApp and a private email account to chat with high-ranking international officials, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Kushner also lied on security clearance forms about WhatsApp communications he had in 2016 with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.


Kushner's top-secret clearance was revoked after he revealed dozens of additional off-the-record communications with foreign officials.

On Monday, The Washington Post reported that 25 security clearance denials were overruled by the White House. One of the individuals mentioned was Kushner. The group included “two current senior White House officials."

Ocasio-Cortez addressed her colleagues in the House who are investigating whether actors within the Trump White House represent a threat to national security:

"Every day that we go on without getting to the bottom of this matter is a day that we are putting hundreds, if not potentially thousands, of Americans at risk. I mean, really? What is next? Putting nuclear codes in Instagram DMs? This is ridiculous."

Watch below:

The 29-year-old freshman lawmaker stressed the necessity of subpoenaing members of the Trump administration, who have so far refused to turn over requested security clearance documents to Congress.

"We need to get to the bottom of this. And in order to do that, we have to issue subpoenas because people in this administration are not cooperating, and every day that there is an insecure line of communication that could be leaked, that could be hacked, that could be screenshotted without our proper channels, is a day that we are putting our national security at risk."

AOC's impassioned emphasis on oversight was non-partisan:

"It doesn't matter the party. When something is going wrong in government, when there is an overreach, when there is an abuse or misconduct of process, we have an obligation to see and investigate it out, and so, it is so serious, especially as a New Yorker, especially as anyone who cares about the security of what happens on American soil. Every day we have an unsecured line of communication, we have a responsibility to investigate it and to make sure we get to the bottom of it."

That is probably a good idea.

If this all seems familiar...

... you are not alone.

Leadership we need.

Last month, House Oversight Committee chair Elijah Cummings (D-MD) wrote in a letter to Kushner's attorney that sloppy record-keeping by the administration could amount to violations of the Presidential Records Act.

“The White House’s failure to provide documents and information is obstructing the committee’s investigation into allegations of violations of federal records laws by White House officials,” Cummings wrote. He said he would “be forced to consider alternative means to obtain compliance” if the White House refuses to cooperate with the Committee's investigation.

The law forbids “using a non-official electronic message account" unless a copy is submitted into the official record within 20 days.

“This is very likely a violation of the Presidential Records Act,” Representative David Cicilline (D-RI) said at the time regarding Kushner's use of backchannels. “We should remember Jared Kushner was alleged to have attempted to set up a back-channel communications with the Russians during the transition, if you remember that reporting.”

“Both Jared and Ivanka were denied—or serious questions were raised—by intelligence and law enforcement about their security clearance. The president overruled those objections and directed they be given and then lied about it,” Cicilline continued. “This is very concerning—not only is it potentially a violation of the Records Act but also raises questions: What is he communicating about, and why does it need to be kept a secret?”

But her emails.

More from People/alexandria-ocasio-cortez

Donald Trump
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Trump Blasted For Announcing New Additions To The White House Lawn As Global Tensions Escalate

President Donald Trump was criticized after announcing that two new flagpoles would be added to the North and South Lawns of the White House—not the greatest look amid heightened global unease as tensions between Israel and Iran ramp up.

According to the Associated Press, Trump watched as a crane installed the newest flagpole on the South Lawn, remarking, “It’s such a beautiful pole.” He later returned to the site to salute as the American flag was raised for the first time.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Donald Trump from CNN supercut
CNN

Trump Mocked For 'Two Weeks' Iran Deadline With Supercut Of All His 'Two Weeks' Promises

President Donald Trump has a history of promising to resolve problems within "two weeks," and a new viral supercut mocks him for all the times he's said as much—including right now with tensions in the Middle East higher than ever.

Trump said Thursday he will decide within two weeks whether to involve U.S. forces directly in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, citing what he called a “substantial chance” for renewed nuclear negotiations with Tehran.

Keep ReadingShow less
red flag with pole on seashore
Seoyeon Choi on Unsplash

People Break Down The 'Silent Red Flags' Folks Tend To Ignore In Relationships

A red flag has come to mean any warning sign in life, in addition to the literal red flags that are placed on beaches or industrial sites to warn people of danger.

People will respond to situations by saying, "That’s a red flag." But before that language evolved, they'd just call them "warning signs."

Keep ReadingShow less
Ted Cruz; Tucker Carlson
The Tucker Carlson Show

Tucker Carlson And Ted Cruz Get Into Shouting Match Over Iran In Bonkers Interview Clip

Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz—a harsh Donald Trump critic-turned-MAGA minion—sat down with fired Fox News personality Tucker Carlson for the conservative influencer's self-produced online content,The Tucker Carlson Show, for the Tucker Carlson Network.

On Tuesday, Carlson shared a 1.5-minute clip revealing that things got contentious when the pair touched on the Trump administration's escalating tensions with Iran.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump; Barack Obama
Suzanne Plunkett-Pool/Getty Images; Scott Olson/Getty Images

Resurfaced Trump Tweet Criticizing Obama Over Iran Comes Back To Bite Him

Amid tensions with Iran, President Donald Trump was criticized for hypocrisy after social media users resurfaced a 2013 tweet in which he accused former President Barack Obama of planning an attack on Iran because of his "inability to negotiate properly."

Trump has declined to clarify whether the U.S. is edging closer to launching strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, following a warning from Iran’s supreme leader against any attack and a rejection of Trump’s demand for surrender.

Keep ReadingShow less