In Abrupt Move, Johnson Ousts Intelligence Committee Chair

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday removed the chair of the House Intelligence Committee (which is described as "powerful" in multiple news articles about the development). Republican Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio has pushed back against the more Trump-friendly wing of his party over topics including Ukraine aid, but Johnson's move was a surprise to many, Fox News reports. "This is not a President Trump decision. This is a House decision, and this is no slight whatsoever to our outgoing chairman. He did a great job," Johnson said, per CNN. "The intelligence community and everything related to (the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence), it needs a fresh start. And that's what this is about. Nothing else."

A source says Johnson, who has the authority to appoint committee members, simply wants to install his own chairman. Still, a source who spoke to Fox News pointed to a rift between Johnson and Turner over Turner's warning, issued last year, calling on the Biden administration to declassify information regarding Russia's anti-satellite technology, which Johnson apparently thought raised unnecessary public alarm. "Under my leadership, we restored the integrity of the Committee and returned its mission to its core focus of national security. The threat from our adversaries is real and requires serious deliberations," Johnson said after he was removed as chair. He will no longer serve on the committee, but will remain on the Oversight and Armed Services committees. (More Mike Johnson stories.)