CNN analyst Juliette Kayyem said it is “very likely” that Russian intelligence agents infiltrated Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to gain access to information about President Trump’s medical condition.
“It is very likely that Russian intelligence agencies — through signal and human intel sources at Walter Reed, etc — have more information about the President’s condition than we do,” Kayyem said on Twitter, with the hashtag “#doctorslietoo.”
It is very likely that Russian intelligence agencies — through signal and human intel sources at Walter Reed, etc — have more information about the President’s condition than we do (though I think we all know how the president is doing.) #doctorslietoo
— Juliette Kayyem (@juliettekayyem) October 3, 2020
Kayyem’s post came as many in the media speculated that Trump’s medical team wasn’t being forthright with information about the president’s medical condition.
Kayyem’s post was mocked by some social media users, including conservative commentator Stephen L. Miller, but Kayyem stuck with her theory in response to the criticism.
“Yep. What part of this don’t you believe: that Trump team is lax on security and vulnerable or that Russia isn’t interested in Trumps health leading to election they are interfering in,” Kayyem responded to Miller. “Keep doing what you are doing. It’s working so well for America and the hospitalized Trump.”
Yep.
What part of this don’t you believe: that Trump team is lax on security and vulnerable or that Russia isn’t interested in Trumps health leading to election they are interfering in.
Keep doing what you are doing. It’s working so well for America and the hospitalized Trump. https://t.co/MFaG9tVyr1— Juliette Kayyem (@juliettekayyem) October 3, 2020
James Carafano, a national security expert for the Heritage Foundation, argued the Russians were unlikely to use resources on infiltrating Walter Reed.
“The Russians are not ten feet tall,” Carafano said. “The notion that Trump gets rushed to Walter Reed and the Russians put together some kind of sophisticated intelligence operation is probably close to zero… The notion that they can just throw something together doesn’t pass the laugh test.”
“I would imagine, actually, the Russians probably are doing the same thing we’re doing, which is reading what the doctors are saying,” Carafano continued. “The notion that you would cultivate a unit resource on twenty-four hours’ notice is nuts. The capabilities the Russians have are classified, so if this professor has any knowledge whatsoever of what Russia’s syncing capabilities are, that’s really interesting.”
Trump was discharged from the hospital Monday after spending the weekend there receiving treatment for COVID-19.
“I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M.,” Trump said before being discharged “Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!”
White House Physician Sean Conley explained that although the president “may not entirely be out of the woods yet,” his team felt sufficiently comfortable with his progress to let him return to the White House.
