Intel Committee Pivots After Mike Johnson Removes Pro-Ukraine, Pro-Deep State Chairman

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) on Thursday named a new chairman and new lawmakers to the House Intelligence Committee after President-elect Donald Trump had concerns about the former pro-Ukraine, pro-surveillance chairman.

Johnson, as the Speaker, has the sole discretion to appoint the chairman the Intelligence Committee, which is a select committee.

Johnson tapped Rep. Rick Crawford (R-AR) to be chairman, and also named Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MOI), Ben Cline (R-VA), Greg Steube (R-FL), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), and Pat Fallon (R-TX) to the select committee.

Crawford in his eighth term in Congress and has started his fifth term on the Intel Committee.

He said in a written statement:

As Chairman, I will aggressively uphold our mandate to provide credible and robust oversight of the Intelligence Community’s funding and activities. Without aggressive oversight and vigorous protection of Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights, the IC is prone to give in to mission creep and skirt U.S. laws. In all our work, I pledge to preserve Americans’ constitutional rights even as we work to support the IC in doing everything required to collect indispensable information from our foreign adversaries.

The Arkansas lawmaker supported the reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a controversial surveillance law that is meant to target foreign adversaries; however, it often incidentally surveils Americans’ communications without a warrant.

Unlike the past chairman, Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH), who was one of the most vocal Ukraine supporters, Crawford voted against a $60.8 billion aid package for Ukraine.

“While the entire Western world stands in support of Ukraine’s fight to expel Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion force, I cannot in good faith vote to send billions of dollars in non-military financial aid to Ukraine to prop up its economy when Americans are struggling with rising costs at home,” he said in a statement at the time.

Cline’s selection to serve on the committee also brings in a lawmaker focused on reforming Section 702 and protecting Americans’ privacy.

The Virginia lawmaker, a member of the Freedom Caucus, said in a statement:

I am honored to be appointed to the House Intelligence Committee. Our world has become an increasingly dangerous place over the last four years, and I look forward to working alongside my colleagues to strengthen our national security and helping to keep the American people safe against ongoing and emerging threats. As a member of the Judiciary Committee, I also hope to bring a fresh perspective that ensures the Constitution, and in turn, the rights of the American people are vigorously defended within our intelligence community.

Cline has grilled Attorney General Merrick Garland over the FBI purchasing Americans’ metadata as a run around the Fourth Amendment.

Cline will join Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) as the second Freedom Caucus member on the committee. The Keystone State lawmaker has also sought to conduct oversight of the intelligence committee.

“I look forward to providing not only a fresh perspective, but conducting actual oversight – not blind obedience to some facets of our Intel Community that all too often abuse their powers, resources, and authority to spy on the American People,” Perry said in a statement in June.

“We want to make sure the IC is operating within the bounds of the Constitution and honoring the rights and civil liberties of American Citizens,” Perry wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on X @SeanMoran3.