Rep. McCaul says he was briefed on 'imminent threat' posed by Soleimani
Republican Rep. Michael McCaul tells 'Outnumbered Overtime' that the threat posed by Iranian Gen. Soleimani was clear before he was taken out by a U.S. airstrike.
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, told “Outnumbered Overtime” on Monday that the intelligence prompting the airstrike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani was “clear,” countering suspicions that were raised against information sent to the White House reporting an “imminent threat” was being planned by Soleimani.
“This threat was imminent and we stopped it by taking out Soleimani,” said the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
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McCaul went on to say, “I have been briefed on this. [The intelligence] was clear,” citing conversations with National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien and Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats have been critical of President Trump’s decision to conduct an airstrike in Iraq that killed Soleimani, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds Force, claiming he did not properly notify Congress in advance and warning about the risk of escalation of violence in the region. Trump has also threatened additional action if Iran retaliates for Soleimani’s death.
“This week, the House will introduce and vote on a War Powers Resolution to limit the President’s military actions regarding Iran,” Pelosi wrote in a letter to fellow Democrats, referring to a similar Senate resolution to be introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. “It reasserts Congress’s long-established oversight responsibilities by mandating that if no further Congressional action is taken, the Administration’s military hostilities with regard to Iran cease within 30 days.”
McCaul called Soleimani “an architect of terror for the past decade.”
McCaul also cited recent provocations by the Iranians, including an attack on a U.S. drone, an attack on a Saudi Arabian oil refinery capacity and a rocket attack in late December that killed an American contractor.
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McCaul went on to say, “And finally a storm and a raid on our embassy. If this president did not act with those facts before him, that would be negligent and the fact that there was an imminent threat that I’ve been briefed on … this threat was imminent and we stopped it by taking out Soleimani.”
Fox News’ Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report.
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