WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the U.S. Senate voted unanimously for a resolution urging the Trump Administration to release to the Senate and House Intelligence Committees a whistleblower complaint that allegedly involves President Trump and Ukraine. 

The resolution states: “the whistleblower complaint received on August 12, 2019, by the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community shall be transmitted immediately to the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and (2) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives should be allowed to evaluate the complaint in a deliberate and bipartisan manner consistent with applicable statutes and processes in order to safeguard classified and sensitive information.”

After the bipartisan vote, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), an ex officio member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the following statement:

“Under the Constitution, impeachment is a decision for the House of Representatives.

“But all Americans should be outraged by reports that President Trump tried to get a foreign government to interfere in our elections.

“The evidence indicates this was not just a one-off conversation.  So releasing only a portion of the complaint won’t sweep this matter under the rug.

“A whistleblower has come forth with a credible complaint of corruption by a sitting President who may have compromised national security to try to drum up dirt on a political rival.  Congress must act and should take the necessary steps to gather the facts, wherever they lead.

“If President Trump was willing to withhold military aid meant to fight Russian aggression, it would raise more troubling questions about the extreme measures he has taken to conceal his personal interactions with Vladimir Putin.  If true, this is another example of President Trump taking an action that benefits Vladimir Putin and Russia.

“The American people should hear directly from the whistleblower, see the evidence for themselves, and then Congress should chart an appropriate course of action. 

“There must be a bipartisan commitment to stopping this president, or any president, from soliciting foreign interference in our democracy.”  

The media has reported the Senate Intelligence Committee is scheduled for a closed door briefing later this week regarding the whistleblower complaint.

The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on a similar non-binding resolution on Wednesday.