President Donald J. Trump and his top advisers in The Situation Room for strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites, Saturday, June 21, 2025 (Official White House photo)
U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., is urging a full investigation into secretly recorded audio from the White House Situation Room purportedly leaked to anti-Trump New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan for their forthcoming book, “Regime Change.”
Axios reported: “Such a taped leak would be a shocking breach of one of the most secure settings on Earth. Independent recording devices in the Situation Room are forbidden.”
“We’re afraid some of our most sensitive conversations were being recorded,” an administration source told us. “And we have no idea which ones.”
President Donald J. Trump and Vice President JD Vance in The Situation Room, June 21, 2025 (Official White House photo)
The Gateway Pundit noted: “Verbatim dialogue from these ultra-classified sessions, including CIA Director John Ratcliffe, called the regime-change scenarios pitched by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ‘farcical.’ Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly responded, ‘In other words, it’s bullsh**,” which has already appeared in New York Times excerpts.”
Lawler appeared Monday on “Katie Pavlich Tonight” on News Nation to discuss the unnerving leak.
“The fact that any of this would potentially find its way to reporters is disturbing, to say the least.”@RepMikeLawler reacts to the potential leak of recordings from the White House Situation Room to New York Times reporters. pic.twitter.com/9esxRzyXer
— Katie Pavlich Tonight (@KatiePavlichNN) June 16, 2026
Katie Pavlich: A report from news website Axios details how top White House officials believe that a pair of New York Times reporters obtained classified audio from meetings in the Situation Room. The Situation Room, of course, is meant to be one of the most secure settings on the planet.
Leaked recordings would have big implications for our national security. Maggie Haberman, a longtime critic of the president, and Jonathan Swan allegedly got their hands on the audio recordings and used them for their new book titled “Regime Change.”
The book includes almost verbatim conversations surrounding the war in Iran, and a source within the administration told Axios, quote: “We’re afraid some of our most sensitive conversations were being recorded, and we have no idea which ones.”
CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard meet in the Situation Room of the White House, Saturday, June 21, 2025, as U.S. forces obliterate Iran’s nuclear capabilities. (Official White House photo by Daniel Torok)
Joining me now is New York Congressman Mike Lawler. Congressman, great to see you. Who would be the leaker in this case, or who would be recording these conversations without the knowledge of the president?
Mike Lawler: Well, it beats the heck out of me. But obviously, it is deeply concerning if anyone was recording conversations in the Situation Room.
As a member of Congress, we go into classified settings all the time, especially as chair of the Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee on the Foreign Affairs Committee. These are deeply sensitive conversations, and they most certainly should not be recorded.
So that is something that, if they really feel there was a leak of any kind, should be fully investigated. From my vantage point, anytime you’re dealing with national security issues, I don’t care what the topic is, this is not something that should occur, and I think they should get to the bottom of it as best they can.
Katie Pavlich: I mean, as you know, even in these settings, you’re not even supposed to wear a smartwatch, like an Apple Watch or a Garmin or something of that nature. No electronics at all.
Mike Lawler: No.
Katie Pavlich: Because of the sensitive nature of the information you’re dealing with.
Mike Lawler: No question. And by the way, when we go into these classified briefings, for instance, when we have a full member-of-Congress briefing involving all 435 members, they won’t even start the meeting if they detect an Apple Watch, a smartphone, or any type of electronic device, and they scan for them.
So for that to occur in the Situation Room certainly would be disconcerting—how anybody would be able to get a device in there and/or who would have done it.
President Donald Trump and his national security team meet in the Situation Room of the White House, Saturday, June 21, 2025. (Official White House photo by Daniel Torok)
Katie Pavlich: The president is reportedly furious, understandably. Have you heard from him or anyone who would be in the Situation Room with him throughout the Iran war about their reaction to this news?
Mike Lawler: No, I haven’t. But I can only imagine the frustration that would result. I mean, look, you’re talking about deeply serious issues, and the president and his administration should have full confidence that they can have sensitive discussions without the possibility of a leak.
As chair of the Middle East Subcommittee, these are decisions and issues that I’ve been engaging with the administration on for months. Many of these conversations do occur on secure lines, and they should, because the objective is to ensure that these decisions—and the sensitive information at the core of them—are not being leaked or disseminated, and certainly not in real time.
