White House denies Pelosi ‘leak’ charge, as details from Kabul cable raise questions over claimFox News, Jan 18, 2019, Adam Shaw, John Roberts, Brooke Singman
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Pelosi’s office, however, maintained that the administration had in fact leaked the details to the media.
Hammill had said earlier Friday that Trump endangered the delegation by first publicizing the trip when he denied the delegation a military aircraft due to the partial government shutdown, then leaking the plans -- necessitating a postponement. The White House called the leak claim a “flat out lie,†while another official called it “asinine.â€
Pelosi’s accusation appeared to be at least partially challenged by details of a cable sent by the State Department in Kabul to Washington recommending she postpone the travel.
Fox News is told that the cable cited Afghan media reporting about the president's suggestion to fly commercially. The cable, according to sources,
noted the delegation had requested authorization to purchase 17 tickets over unclassified systems and advised that their travel would not be a secret. Urging her to postpone, the cable also noted that because few airlines fly into Kabul, their arrival time would also be easy to predict.
“When the Speaker of the House and about 20 others from Capitol Hill decide to book their own commercial flights to Afghanistan, the world is going to find out. The idea we would leak anything that would put the safety and security of any American at risk is a flat out lie,†a senior White House official said.
More:
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-denies-pelosi-leak-charge-details-from-kabul-cable
