Russia Propaganda Is Aired on House Floor, Intel Chair Says

Russian propaganda about the invasion of Ukraine has echoed in House debate, Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner said Sunday. Appearing on CNN's State of the Union, the Republican was asked about Rep. Michael McCaul's comments that Russian propaganda had seeped into their party's base. "Oh, it's absolutely true," Turner told host Jake Tapper. "We see directly coming from Russia attempts to mask communications that are anti-Ukraine and pro-Russia messages, some of which we even hear being uttered on the House floor."

The misinformation is a problem, Turner said. "There are members of Congress today who still incorrectly say that this conflict between Russia and Ukraine is over NATO, which of course it is not," he said, per the Hill. In addition to hurting efforts to secure aid to Ukraine, which he supports, Turner said the misinformation makes it hard for everyone to understand the big picture. "To the extent that this propaganda takes hold," he said, "it makes it more difficult for us to really see this as an authoritarian versus democracy battle, which is what it is." (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)