begin quote from:
Disclosure of classified info has some wondering whether Trump is in over his head
Why the latest White House crisis is a really big deal
Story highlights
- Trump's discussing classified information with the Russian foreign minister impacts his political standing and US national security interests
- "When he goes off script like this (it is) ultimately destructive of his own purposes."
(CNN)Donald
Trump's latest crisis -- over his reported disclosure of highly
classified information to Russia -- is giving voice to a question
whispered privately in Washington during weeks of political turmoil: Is
the President up to the job?
"This
isn't really about the power of the President. He has the power to do
this," former CIA Director Michael Hayden said on "CNN Tonight" Monday.
"This is more about the person of the President and the performance."
The
new storm engulfing an already beleaguered White House is so
potentially damaging because it stretches far beyond the simple personal
standing and reputation of the President.
The
rumpus, first reported by The Washington Post, has national security,
intelligence and international implications that White House attempts to
knock down the story on Monday night conspicuously failed to address.
It's even possible that lives could be at risk, considering that the
information Trump reportedly shared was related to an ISIS terror plot
against civil aviation -- currently the most urgent terrorist threat to
the United States -- and emanated from a sensitive intelligence sharing
agreement with a foreign agency.
Once
again, the credibility of the White House political operation and the
efforts of its communications operation to keep up with an inexperienced
President's chaotic leadership style are on the line.
The many paths from Trump to Russia
"We are seeing the results of him being a bit undisciplined, impulsive, instinctive and intuitive, little patience for preparation and little patience for process," said Hayden. "When he goes off script like this (it is) ultimately destructive of his own purposes."
"We are seeing the results of him being a bit undisciplined, impulsive, instinctive and intuitive, little patience for preparation and little patience for process," said Hayden. "When he goes off script like this (it is) ultimately destructive of his own purposes."
Here's why:
1. The competence question
There
are few commodities as important to presidents as a reputation for
competence. Once public confidence in a commander-in-chief's capacity to
do his job wanes, their political decline can be brutally swift, as
President George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter could attest.
That's why this story may end up being so damaging to Trump.
Earlier
uproars that buffeted the White House, over the President's
inflammatory tweets and a litany of falsehoods over his inaugural crowd
size, could be put down to Trump's idiosyncratic freewheeling style.
Critics saw his firing of FBI Director James Comey as evidence of more
worrying autocratic instincts.
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But
the report that Trump shared top secret information about an ISIS
terror plot with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ambassador
Sergey Kislyak in the Oval Office last Wednesday -- the morning after
the Comey firing -- poses a more searching question about whether the
President can be trusted with the gravest responsibilities that come
with his office and whether he understands the implications of
discussing America's most carefully guarded secrets with a US adversary.
As
those questions rattled through Washington Monday night, the White
House was in a bunker mentality. And even allies who have been
supportive of the administration so far are now casting huge doubt on
its credibility.
"They
are in a downward spiral right now and have got to figure out a way to
come to grips with all that's happening," said Republican Sen. Bob
Corker, who is viewed as a sober and restrained influencer on Capitol
Hill.
"The chaos that is being
created by the lack of discipline is creating an environment that I
think — it creates a worrisome environment," Corker said.
There
is not much doubt that of all the dramas that have battered this
administration, the new Russia intelligence saga is the most dramatic.
Alan
Dershowitz, professor emeritus at Harvard University, said Trump is
safe from criminal prosecution or impeachment because a President has
the power to declassify intelligence.
But he offered a stunning assessment of the gravity of the situation.
"This
is the most serious charge ever made against a sitting president of the
United States. Let's not underestimate it," he told CNN's Erin Burnett.
But
Trump hit back early Tuesday, implicitly dismissing arguments about his
competence by arguing that he had made a strategic decision to share
intelligence with his Oval Office guests.
"As
President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H.
meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining to
terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want
Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism,"
Trump wrote on Twitter.
Former CIA
Director Leon Panetta, however, told CNN's "New Day" that a lack of
discipline by the President was causing him to make rash decisions.
"The
President of the United States cannot just do or say or speak whatever
the hell he wants. That's just irresponsible. So you need to have some
people that sit down with the President before he goes into a meeting
and say these are the lines you cannot cross because it relates to the
security of our country," Panetta said.
2. The Intelligence angle
There
have already been several reports that allied intelligence agencies,
fearful of the administration's capacity to guard the most sensitive
secrets, have been wary about sharing top secret information with the
United States.
Those concerns are now likely to multiply.
The
Washington Post said in its report, major details of which were
confirmed by CNN, that Trump had told the Russians about information
provided by a US partner agency in an intelligence-sharing agreement
that was so sensitive details were withheld from allies and restricted
even within the US government. The consequences of that could hardly be
more serious, former CIA case officer Bob Baer told Burnett.
"The
President, by revealing this to the Russians, has lost control of this
information. It's going to go to the Syrians, It's going to go to the
Iranians — Russian allies," Baer said.
"The
ability to protect that source whoever he is, wherever he is has been
seriously undermined ... If a CIA officer had revealed this information
to the Russians, he would be fired instantly."
The
White House on Monday blasted the reports as "false." National Security
Adviser H.R. McMaster said that Trump did not compromise any sources
and methods.
But while the identity
of the country that provided the US with the information is not
publicly known, it is unlikely to be too hard for the Russians, with
their highly sophisticated intelligence agencies, to work out where it
came from. That leaves open the possibility that vital intelligence, key
to protecting American lives, may not be available to US clandestine
services in future.
Lawmakers and
intelligence officials are already warning that disclosing this type of
information could harm US efforts to counter an ISIS plot to place
explosives in laptops and other electronic devices to evade airport
security.
3. The political hit
One
reason why Trump is so politically vulnerable to Monday's reports is
that he anchored much of his campaign on lambasting Democratic nominee
Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information.
But
now he appears to have acted in way that is just as much, if not more,
injurious to American secrets as Clinton's private email scheme,
exposing him to accusations of hypocrisy.
Republicans
meanwhile are getting strung out by the constant chaos raging around
the Trump presidency — and that they are constantly forced to address,
to the detriment of their once-in-a-generation chance to use Republican
majorities on Capitol Hill to enact a conservative agenda.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said sardonically Monday: "Can we have a crisis-free day? That's all I'm asking."
The
big unknown for the White House is whether the latest Trump-triggered
crisis is so significant that it wreaks political damage of greater
magnitude than he has so far experienced.
It
could be that the latest drama is so explosive that it opens up space
between the administration and Republican leaders who have so far stood
firm behind Trump. House Speaker Paul Ryan notably put out a statement
seeking more information on Monday's development, but did not rush to
back the President. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell kept his own
counsel.
It's probably still too
early to assess how the constant controversies impact Republican
prospects heading into the 2018 midterm elections. But as the political
calendar grinds through summer, vulnerable lawmakers may begin thinking
of their own skins more than the fate of the Trump administration.
That point may not be here yet, but it will not be far off if things keep going badly for the White House.
The
fast moving developments of Monday night into Tuesday also again called
into question the credibility of the White House -- which was already
compromised by its shifting explanations for the firing of Comey. Both
McMaster and his deputy, Dina Powell, used the word "false" to describe
the Post's reporting. Yet Trump's tweets appeared to validate at least
parts of the story.
4. The Russia question
McMaster: Washington Post story is false 00:43
If suspicion was rampant in Washington about the President's links to Russia before, it is going to go into overdrive now.
Already
the pictures of Lavrov and Kislyak yukking it up with Trump pointed to a
political gaffe by the White House. Now, Democrats are using Trump's
apparent intelligence lapse to renew calls for a special prosecutor to
probe allegations of Russian election-meddling and possible collusion
with the Trump campaign — and to hike pressure on Republicans on the
issue.
"What we know is that it is a
very, very serious threat to our national security and safety, and
that's why my hope is that Republicans and Democrats will come together
in favor of an independent investigation through a special prosecutor
and through an independent commission," Connecticut Democratic Sen.
Richard Blumenthal said Monday on CNN.
"Make no mistake: this kind of serious grave threat really requires a national response, putting country above politics."
At
the very least, Monday's bombshell will renew intense curiosity about
why Trump, unlike almost everyone else in Washington, does not seem to
be as wary of Russia and its motives.
"It's
the Russians -- we have been going through all this stuff," CNN senior
political analyst David Gergen said. "Why is he giving information to
the Russians of all people?"
5. The international angle
Washington Post reporter stands by story 00:47
Monday's
explosive disclosures erupted at a time when the President is preparing
to take his first steps on the world stage. He will leave Friday for a
trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Italy and Belgium.
That
was always going to be an onerous test to such an inexperienced
commander-in-chief. Now, Trump will be under even more intense pressure
to counter perceptions abroad that he is out of his depth in the Oval
Office and to reassure foreign leaders that America remains a force in
the world under his leadership and can be relied upon to keep allies'
secrets.
It is not just the
reputation of the President himself that is on the line. The credibility
of the United States, the most powerful nation in the world and the
guarantor of Western security, is being publicly eroded.
Ultimately, it comes down to Trump himself and his attitude toward his job.
"He
is very inexperienced, this is an absolutely new world to him," Hayden
said. "If I fault him for anything, it's not that he's inexperienced --
he doesn't have humility in the face of his inexperience."
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