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Rep. Mike Turner says Speaker Johnson will “assert leadership” if any “improper” behavior by new Intelligence Committee members
Washington — Rep. Mike Turner, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said on Sunday that he expects Speaker Mike Johnson to intervene should any “improper” behavior occur after the speaker appointed two controversial Trump allies to the committee.
“He’s going to continue to monitor the situation,” Turner said Sunday of Johnson on “Face the Nation,” adding that “if there’s any indication of anything improper happening,” he expects that “the speaker will assert leadership here.”
Johnson appointed two hardline Republicans, Reps. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Ronny Jackson of Texas, to the powerful House Intelligence Committee earlier this month. The move quickly sparked backlash, as some view the two lawmakers’ blemished records as posing disqualifying conflicts of interests with the committee that bears heavy influence on national security and foreign policy.
Even so, Turner, an Ohio Republican, said the intelligence community indicated that there was not an ongoing or current issue that needed to be addressed. And he noted that the speaker, who he said has met with the committee, “has absolutely committed himself to these two individuals following the rules.”
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“Both of them have military experience, both of them have had access to classified information before and there’s been no reports of any incidences of their mishandling of classified information,” Turner added.
Jackson, a former White House physician, was demoted by the Navy in 2022 after a Pentagon watchdog investigation substantiated allegations of inappropriate conduct. The report detailed two incidents where Jackson inappropriately used alcohol while in charge of providing medical care and treatment to former Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump, along with allegations that he disparaged subordinates.
Perry, the former leader of the House Freedom Caucus, had his phone seized in 2022 by the FBI as part of an investigation into the effort to overturn the 2020 election. Perry took aim at the committee in a statement following his appointment, saying that he looks forward to “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.”
Turner said Perry has apologized, though he noted that “those are the types of words that you would not want from somebody who’s joining a committee that is obviously very dedicated to national security and very dedicated to working on a bipartisan way.” He added that upon joining the committee, he expects that Perry will be “absolutely satisfied that he can play a role, too, in the work that we’re doing for national security.”
On Jackson, Turner said the reports are “unrelated to the handling of classified information.” noting his military background and saying that his constituents “believe that those issues are resolved.”
“We’re going to be certainly working with the speaker and with Mr. Jackson so that again he is a very productive member of our committee,” Turner said. “And if there are any incidences, the speaker has indicated that as with Mr. Perry, that he will enforce our rules.”
CBS News reached out to Perry and Jackson’s offices for comment.
Simone Biles is heading back to the Olympics and the white-hot spotlight that comes with it.
The gymnastics superstar earned a third trip to her sport’s biggest stage by cruising to victory at the U.S. Olympic trials on Sunday night, posting a two-day all-around total of 117.225 to clinch the lone automatic spot on the five-woman team.
Three years removed from the Tokyo Olympics — where she pulled out of multiple finals to prioritize her safety and mental health — Biles heads back to the games looking perhaps as good as ever.
“Trusting the process and (my coaches), I knew I’d be back,” Biles said.
A trip to France has never really been in doubt since she returned from a two-year break last summer. All she’s done over the last 12 months is win a sixth world all-around title and her eighth and ninth national championship — both records — while further cementing her status as the best-ever in her sport.
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She’ll head to Paris as a prohibitive favorite to bookend the Olympic gold she won in 2016, but with things to work on, too.
Biles backpedaled after landing her Yurchenko double pike vault, a testament to both the vault’s difficulty and the immense power she generates during a skill few male gymnasts try and even fewer land as cleanly.
She hopped off the beam after failing to land her side aerial, though she wasn’t quite as frustrated as she was during a sloppy performance on Friday that left her uttering an expletive for all the world to see.
Biles finished with a flourish on floor exercise, her signature event. Though there was a small step out of bounds, there was also the unmatched world-class tumbling that recently drew a shoutout from pop star Taylor Swift, whose song “Ready For It” opens Biles’ routine.
She stepped off the podium to a standing ovation, then sat down atop the steps to take in the moment in what could be her last competitive round on American soil for quite a while.
Next stop, Paris.
The Americans will be loaded with experience as they try to return to the top of the podium after finishing second to Russia in 2020.
Reigning Olympic champion Sunisa Lee, 2020 Olympic floor exercise champion Jade Carey and 2020 Olympic silver medalist Jordan Chiles and Hezley Rivera all made the final roster for Team USA. Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong will travel to Paris as alternates.
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Yet the Biles that will step onto the floor at Bercy Arena for Olympic qualifying in four weeks isn’t the same one that left Tokyo.
She’s taken intentional steps to make sure her life is no longer defined by her gymnastics. Biles married Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens in the spring of 2023 and the two are building a house in the northern Houston suburbs they hope to move into shortly after Biles returns from Paris.
Biles heads to France as perhaps the face of the U.S. Olympic movement, though she’s well aware that more than a few of the millions that will tune in to watch next month will be checking to see if the demons that derailed her in Tokyo resurface.
And while there are still moments of anxiety — including at last year’s world championships — she has put safeguards in place to protect herself. She meets with a therapist weekly, even during competition season, something she didn’t do in preparation for the 2020 games.
Biles, Lee, Carey, Chiles and Rivera will be considered heavy favorites in France, particularly with defending Olympic champion Russia unable to compete as part of the fallout from the war in Ukraine.
The Americans will take their oldest women’s team ever to the games, as Biles’ unrivaled longevity — she hasn’t lost a meet she’s started and finished since 2013 — and the easing of rules around name, image and likeness rules at the NCAA level allowed 2020 Olympic veterans Carey, Chiles and Lee to continue to compete while cashing in on their newfound fame at the same time.
They have relied on that experience to get back to this moment during a sometimes harrowing meet that saw leading contenders Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely and Kayla DiCello exit with leg injuries that took them out of the mix weeks before opening ceremonies.
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