Rep. Frederica Wilson: President Trump 'Desperate For Attention & Needs Psychological Help'
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – South Florida lawmakers are outraged at the report by the Washington Post that President Donald Trump revealed classified information to the Russians.
Congresswoman Frederica Wilson didn't mince her words in a statement to the press.
"I believe that the president is desperate for attention and needs psychological help," she said.
Wilson called his approach to the presidency as "cavalier and careless."
She added that while the president had the right to declassify anything he wants, the sooner he realizes Russia is not our friend the better off the country will be.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Wilson's Republican counterpart, was equally harsh.
"I'm shocked, I'm dismayed, I'm outraged. This is sensitive classified information that the president has shared," she said.
Ros-Lehtinen said she expects the Trump administration to downplay the matter and tell the American public that no information was shared that would damage the methods, sources or the intelligence.
But Ros-Lehtinen said revealing highly classified information to the Russian foreign minister and ambassador to the U.S., she says, raises questions about the president's judgement.
"Loose lips sink ships. We all know that. You have to handle information in a discrete manner and it's not cocktail chatter. It's not something you share in a breezy manner with anyone," she said.
CBS4's repeated calls to Sen. Marco Rubio went unanswered, but reporters caught up with him on Capitol Hill.
"I haven't read the story, I'm sorry," he said.
Rubio, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, didn't have time to stop and discuss the Trump report.
In a statement, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said, "If true, news reports indicate that President Trump compromised America's intelligence gathering operations and security, and possibly harmed a relationship with a key ally and put lives at risk. His disclosure would be a gravely dangerous compromise of classified information with an adversary. Congress needs an immediate and full briefing on what damage has been done."
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart's statement was brief, but echoed what many of his colleagues said.
"Putin and the Russian regime are dangerous players in the global arena. They are not our allies and cannot be trusted with sensitive, classified information," he said.
And Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo tweeted out: "The importance of carefully handling classified information was one of the big lessons of 2016 . All leaders should be held to same standard"