‘Extremely troubling.’ KC lawmakers respond to reports of Russian bounties on troops
Kansas City area Republicans attempted to steer focus toward Russia and away from President Donald Trump Tuesday as they responded to reports that the White House sat on intelligence about Russian bounties against U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
Trump was first briefed on the alleged bounties in 2019, according to a report from The Associated Press. The reported lack of response by the White House to the threat against U.S. forces could engulf Trump in a new scandal as his re-election campaign moves into full gear.
Several GOP lawmakers from the Kansas City region serve on committees that oversee foreign affairs, intelligence and the military. They could emerge as key players in determining whether congressional efforts to investigate the Trump administration’s handling of the intelligence are bipartisan or another bitter standoff between the two parties—like the previous fight over impeachment.
Their initial responses all affirmed Russia’s status as a threat to the U.S. But they did not express concerns over Trump’s handling of the intelligence as congressional Democrats call for answers from the administration.
Rep. Steve Watkins, a Kansas Republican and U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, responded to a question about the next steps Congress should take by pledging his loyalty to Trump.
“Russia poses an existential threat. I stand with the President, the military, the intelligence community, and freedom-loving people,” said Watkins, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a statement.
The Topeka Republican faces primary challenges in August from Kansas Treasurer Jake LaTurner and former Kansas Secretary of Administration Dennis Taylor. Support from Trump could be critical in determining the outcome of the race.
Watkins’ campaign ads, which feature photographs of him in his military uniform, include footage from a 2018 rally he held with Trump in which the president told a Topeka crowd “a vote for Steve is a vote for me.”
Other GOP lawmakers provided comparatively stronger responses that suggested Congress will seek more information, but they did not specifically reference Trump or explicitly call for an investigation.
Rep. Vicky Hartzler, a Missouri Republican who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, said lawmakers need to learn more about Russia’s alleged efforts against U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
“I have yet to be briefed by the White House on the issue, but the reports are extremely troubling. If these reports are accurate, this only further underscores that Russia is a major geopolitical foe and a threat to American interests abroad,” Hartzler said in a statement.
“It’s incredibly important that we get all the information surrounding the situation, including the scope of Russia’s anti-American operations in Afghanistan, so that we can take the necessary steps to protect our armed forces from our enemies,” she said.
In contrast to his House Republican colleagues, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Missouri Democrat, called out both the alleged actions by Russia and the reported inaction by Trump.
“Allegations that Russia provided material support to terrorists as a bounty to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan are profoundly disturbing, and reports that the President had this information for over a year and did nothing should have every American outraged,” Cleaver said in a statement.
“20 American service members were killed in Afghanistan last year. If our national intelligence apparatus are able to confirm that any of these servicemembers were killed to fulfill a Russian bounty, it must elicit an urgent and consequential response from Congress and this Administration.”
Sen. Roy Blunt, a Missouri Republican and member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Russia should face consequences from the U.S. if the intelligence regarding the alleged bounties is accurate.
“It should be no surprise that President Putin is always looking for ways to diminish our influence in the world. If the intelligence leads to the conclusion that Russia went beyond their normal goals of creating problems for the United States and actually put a bounty on U.S. troops and our allies, we should insist that Russia be penalized not only by us, but by other countries that seek more freedom for the world,” Blunt said in a statement.
Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, echoed this sentiment in a brief statement Tuesday afternoon, saying that if Russia “targeted American soldiers, they should be held accountable,” without specifying steps Congress should take.
Sen. Jerry Moran, the Kansas Republican who chairs the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said in a statement he has reviewed classified intelligence provided to the Senate and will work with the Senate colleagues to consider an appropriate response. He did not mention the Trump administration in his statement.
“A Russian intelligence unit placing bounties on the lives of Americans is unacceptable, and there should be consequences for Russia’s malign behavior,” Moran said.
Senate Democrats called on two of Trump’s top cabinet secretaries to testify before the Senate this week following reports by the Associated Press and New York Times.
Senate Democrats sent a letter Tuesday to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper asking when the two cabinet officials learned about the intelligence regarding Russian bounties and whether Pompeo raised the issue during a May discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
“U.S. service members raise their right hands to protect and defend the United States. They deserve a Commander in Chief who will respond forcefully if bounties are put on them by enemies of the United States,” the letter states.
The State Department and Defense Department did not immediately respond Tuesday to the letter, which was signed by Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, and Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee.
Pompeo, an Army veteran and former Wichita congressman, was an outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s handling of the 2012 attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya, which resulted in the deaths of four Americans.
“The core tenet of my military experience is that we don’t leave anyone on the battlefield,” Pompeo told The Wichita Eagle in 2014 when he was appointed to a special committee investigating the attack.
Pompeo’s zeal in investigating Benghazi as a congressman has been noted in the past by Menendez as Pomepo has bristled at congressional investigations during his tenure as secretary of state.
This story was originally published June 30, 2020 at 1:19 PM.
