House Republicans Walk Into Secure Meeting Room and Interrupt Impeachment Inquiry

4 年前

Republican members of Congress were filmed entering a secure room in the Capitol as a protest against depositions in the Democrat-led impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump being held behind closed doors.

In a video uploaded by Scott Thuman, a political correspondent with Sinclair Broadcast Group, two dozen House Republicans can be seen walking into the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF), a room designed to prevent foreign spies from obtaining information.

Thuman said the GOP Congress members were demanding access to the impeachment inquiry, which they labeled a “Soviet-style process.”

The inquiry is being conducted by bipartisan committees.

The deposition of Laura K. Cooper, a Defense Department official who oversees Ukraine policy, was delayed due to the protest.

The Republicans were criticized for bringing their cell phones into the SCIF by security experts and Democratic politicians, including Ilhan Omar, who tweeted that the move had jeopardized national security.

Mieke Eoyang, vice president of Third Way National Security, said that the electronic devices of members of Congress “are high-value targets for compromise by foreign intelligence services.” Credit: Scott Thuman via Storyful