Briefing Brawl: White House Slams CNN Over Iran Strike Report

The White House is pushing back against a CNN report that claimed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries weren’t briefed on President Donald Trump’s surprise attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called the report “fake news” on X, stating that the White House made bipartisan courtesy calls to congressional leadership and spoke to Schumer before the strike. According to Leavitt, Jeffries couldn’t be reached until after the strike, but he was briefed.

The CNN report cited sources saying House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, both Republicans, were briefed ahead of time, while Schumer and Jeffries received notifications only before the public announcement, well after the attack. Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Jim Himes, members of the intelligence committees, reportedly weren’t told until after the strikes. Both Schumer and Jeffries condemned Trump’s actions, questioning the lack of congressional authorization, but didn’t claim they weren’t briefed or notified before the strike.