Today, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) released the following statement after President Trump confirmed the Washington Post’s story that he gave classified intelligence to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak during their closed meeting in the Oval Office last week:

“It is well beyond time for Republicans to put country before party and hold this President accountable.

“America’s smart, tough national security strategy depends on our brave intelligence officers – in cooperation with our allies – gathering information that can be used to defeat our enemies abroad and prevent attacks at home. Through utter and reckless incompetence, President Trump has undermined that strategy and put American servicemembers and American security at risk.

“This is a grave mistake that weakens us and could cause a crisis of confidence among our allies that will have ramifications far beyond when President Trump leaves office.

“From the beginning, I said I was willing to work with President Trump on shared priorities, but this crosses every line. All members of Congress – Republicans and Democrats – should be standing shoulder to shoulder as patriots to demand answers from President Trump so that we can contain the damage and help keep Americans safe. Anything less is a dangerous failure of Congress to faithfully execute its role as a check on the power of the President as the founders intended.”