GOP “Storming” of Secure Facility for Impeachment Proceedings: An Explainer

On Wednesday morning, a group of Republican Members of Congress led by Rep. Matt Gaetz “stormed” the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) where the House Intelligence, Oversight and Reform, and Foreign Affairs Committees were conducting a scheduled deposition of Laura Cooper, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, as part of the impeachment inquiry. In doing so, many of them took their electronic devices, such as cell phones, into the SCIF. That is a fundamental breach of security and forces the Intelligence Committee to conduct a sweep of the SCIF to ensure that it has not been compromised. As of this writing, many members of Congress are still in the SCIF, although some or all of their devices appear to have been removed.

[link to www.justsecurity.org (secure)]