WASHINGTON -- A freshman Republican congressman currently campaigning for his second term recently suggested that President Barack Obama will reveal sensitive information relating to national security if he wins re-election in November.
Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), a Tea Party favorite who in 2010 unseated the first Iraq War veteran to serve in Congress, was caught on video at a fundraiser last week telling supporters why Obama should not be re-elected.
“Finally the third reason is … the things that the president may do in a second term," Fitzpatrick says in the video. "When he left the microphone on in Russia, we all heard what he said … left unrestrained, without the inhibitions of the next election -- he’d have flexibility, he said, flexibility to do what he wants to do. Whether it’s trade away … the secrets of our national intelligence, to, what he could do to the United States Supreme Court in the next four years."
Fitzpatrick was referring to remarks Obama made to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, which he intended to be private but were picked up by a live microphone. Obama said he would have 'more flexibility' in missile defense negotiations after the 2012 elections, but the comments did not appear to touch on classified secrets the president might consider sharing with Russia.
The video of Fitzpatrick was provided to The Huffington Post by CREDO SuperPAC as part of its “Take Down the Tea Party Ten” campaign, which aims to oust 10 Tea Party-affiliated members of the House of Representatives.
The group called Fitzpatrick "the ultimate embarrassment" in a statement to HuffPost. "This isn’t the first time Fitzpatrick has peddled a wild conspiracy theory. Last year, Fitzpatrick questioned whether the government orchestrated the downgrade of the U.S. government’s credit rating."
A request for comment from the Fitzpatrick campaign was not returned.
Watch the above video to see Fitzpatrick make his comments, which come around the 4-minute mark.