On Thursday, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson appointed Arkansas 1st District Rep. Rick Crawford as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, citing the need for a “fresh start.”
Johnson praised Crawford, a committee member since 2017, for his “faithful service” and steady leadership as he begins his eighth term in the House.
“Our intelligence community and its oversight must maintain the highest levels of trust,” Johnson said. “The House Intel Committee will play a pivotal role in this work in the new Congress, and Rick Crawford will provide principled leadership as its chairman. He has earned the respect of his colleagues through his years of faithful service on the committee and his steady approach to the challenges facing our country.”
In a statement, Crawford said he was honored to lead the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and pledged to uphold its oversight responsibilities.
“Since joining the committee in 2017, I have witnessed firsthand that abuse within our nation’s security apparatus has eroded trust in our institutions and compromised America’s ability to gather intelligence,” Crawford said. “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 mission creep and skirting U.S. laws.”
Crawford added that the committee would focus on rebuilding trust in the intelligence community and addressing challenges from all types of adversaries.
“This Congress has an opportunity to course-correct from the Biden administration’s failures, promote common-sense peace through strength, and re-focus our nation’s intelligence and counterintelligence community against our adversaries. Right now, terrorists, rogue regimes, and foreign state-actors are rapidly developing new ways to exploit and harm America’s national interests, and it’s our responsibility to ensure intelligence agencies remain three steps ahead of our enemies. And now, more than ever, leaks and indiscretions by misguided intelligence staff can endanger Americans and hinder our ability to predict and prevent attacks. Everyone on the committee and within the IC must be devoted to secrecy regarding the material we review. The lives of our covert agents in the field, and the security of our homeland depend on it.
“The committee has a unique opportunity to work toward rebuilding our intelligence apparatus so that our IC is focused on the challenges of today and is prepared for the threats of tomorrow. It is our aim to rebuild relationships with our partners in the Western Hemisphere, address issues with the development of IC assessments, determine which intelligence tools are needed to protect Americans, and provide our brave men and women in the U.S. intelligence services with the support they need. In our age of increasing threats from abroad and bloated bureaucracy at home, the committee will be committed to preventing enemies’ attacks and upholding the privacy rights of all American citizens.”
Crawford also thanked outgoing Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, for his leadership in the previous Congress.
“I want to thank Chairman Turner for his work in the 118th Congress,” Crawford said. “He led our committee ably and admirably at a time when there was a distinct need for a steady hand. He is a valued member of our conference, and I will build from the solid base his leadership provided.”
The decision to name Crawford came after Johnson unexpectedly removed Turner from the role. Turner’s support for aiding Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression had put him at odds with President-elect Donald Trump.
“Outgoing Chairman Mike Turner deserves our gratitude for his leadership and critical work in the 118th Congress,” Johnson said. “He led the committee well during a very challenging period of our nation’s history and was fully dedicated to the task. He is a highly valued member of our conference, and we look forward to his continued contributions to keeping America safe and expanding our global security, including in his important position as the chair of the U.S. delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.”
Democratic lawmakers criticized the decision to remove Turner, saying it could undermine the committee’s independence. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called Turner a “highly principled leader” whose removal could benefit adversaries like Russia and China.
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence oversees the U.S. intelligence community, including its intelligence-related activities and the Military Intelligence Program.
Image: Office of Rep. Rick Crawford
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