The news that the so-called whistleblower who objected to the substance of President Donald Trump’s July 25 phone call with the Ukraine president has ties to former Vice President Joe Biden elicited sharp reaction on Thursday night.
Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), appearing on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle,” told guest host Jason Chaffetz that this news now is “calling into question” whether or not the whistleblower engaged in “coordination” with House Democrats prior to speaking out about concerns.
Should this person have to testify in person — or not?
“The reason why there’s a statue is when they [whistleblowers] become public, they don’t get retaliated against,” said Meadows.
“To have an anonymous … it’s just not what our government is set up to do,” he added.
“If the whistleblower wants to come forward,” he added, “that individual needs to be identified.”
On Thursday night, one person shared this reaction in terms of the effect this news is going to have on Biden as he continues to try for the 2020 Democratic nomination:
Whistleblower worked with Biden and traveled to Ukraine at least 1 time with the former Vice President.
This can’t get any worse for Biden. This has boomeranged beyond imagination for the Democrats.
— Lo Keys (@LoKeys910) October 11, 2019
And see this tweet as well from Thursday night:
Report: Biden worked with whistleblower as VP
WAPO: it is probable that the whistleblower briefed Biden and likely that he accompanied him on Air Force II during at least one of the six visits The 2020 candidate made to the country.
— Lori Hendry (@Lrihendry) October 11, 2019
To clarify the latest news: The Democratic candidate for 2020 with whom the so-called whistleblower against Trump had a “professional” tie is Biden — according to intelligence officers and former White House officials and as reported by the Washington Examiner late on Thursday.
Trump himself referenced the news during his Minneapolis rally on Thursday night — saying again, as he has long said, “This is nothing but a partisan witch hunt.”
Related: Whistleblower Bombshell: There Are Biden Connections
Attorneys for the whistleblower had said the individual worked “in the executive branch.”
But the Examiner “has established that he is a career CIA analyst who was detailed to the National Security Council at the White House and has since left,” the outlet reported.
The New York Times said in late September the person was a CIA officer — and the publication took heat for that revelation.
Then, on October 4, that same publication added that the individual “was detailed to the National Security Council at one point.”
Michael Atkinson, inspector general for the intelligence community, told congressional lawmakers the whistleblower had a “professional tie” to a 2020 Democratic candidate.
The 2020 Democratic candidate with whom the CIA whistleblower had a "professional" tie is @JoeBiden, according to intelligence officers and former @WhiteHouse officials. https://t.co/kELmnhhiL2
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) October 10, 2019
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