Donald Trump tweets about Sally Yates before Senate hearing
Yates is expected to testify about Russia's interference in the election.
— -- President Donald Trump tweeted this morning about former acting Attorney General Sally Yates before her scheduled appearance at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
Yates is expected to address the concerns that she reportedly raised in January about the veracity of claims made by then–national security adviser Michael Flynn over his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.
Yates was fired by Trump on Jan. 30 after saying the Justice Department would not defend his proposed travel ban.
Today, Trump suggested in a tweet that Yates had leaked classified information to the press.
"Ask Sally Yates, under oath, if she knows how classified information got into the newspapers soon after she explained it to W.H. Counsel," he wrote, originally misspelling "counsel" and later correcting it.
At today’s White House press briefing, press secretary Sean Spicer refused to elaborate on the president’s tweet.
"I think the tweet speaks for itself. Sometimes you don't have to read too much into it," Spicer said.
Trump posted another tweet on the topic — but not about Yates directly — nearly 20 minutes earlier. In that tweet, he pointed the finger at the Obama administration for giving Flynn "the highest security clearance."
Yates and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper are scheduled to appear in front of the committee today.