President Trump on Thursday called for The New York Times and other publications to apologize after reporting leaked information, saying the spotlight is on "low-life leakers."
"Leaking, and even illegal classified leaking, has been a big problem in Washington for years," the president tweeted.
Leaking, and even illegal classified leaking, has been a big problem in Washington for years. Failing @nytimes (and others) must apologize!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 16, 2017
The spotlight has finally been put on the low-life leakers! They will be caught!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 16, 2017
Flynn's resignation came after reports, citing unidentified sources, that Flynn misled top White House officials about the contents of phone calls he had with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. before Trump was sworn in.
On Tuesday, The New York Times cited four unidentified U.S. officials in a report that said Trump campaign staffers had "repeated contacts" with Russian officials during the election.
Trump on Wednesday accused the intelligence community of giving out leaks "like candy."
"The real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given our by 'intelligence' like candy. Very un-American!" he posted on Twitter.
House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason ChaffetzJason ChaffetzReverse the 'post-truth' attitude to public health research GOP lawmaker considers requiring presidential candidates to undergo medical exam House Dem: 'Are we witnessing the first Manchurian presidency?' MORE (R-Utah) on Wednesday asked the Justice Department's inspector general to investigate the intelligence leaks that led to the ousting of Flynn.
"Over the last several days, there have been a series of news articles recounting potentially classified national security information," Chaffetz wrote in a letter, which was also signed by the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Bob GoodlatteBob GoodlatteHouse Dem: 'Are we witnessing the first Manchurian presidency?' Several Hispanic Dems denied entry to meeting with ICE Gingrich calls for investigations into intel leaks MORE (R-Va.).
"We have serious concerns about the potential protection of classified information here. ... The release of classified information can, by definition, have grave effects on national security. In light of this, we request that your office begin an immediate investigation into whether classified information was mishandled here."