GOP senators: Biden Pentagon appointee leaked China spy balloon info under Trump to deflect blame

Two Republican senators say a top Pentagon official leaked classified information about the Chinese spy balloon program during the Trump administration to deflect blame about the Biden administration’s mishandling of the situation.

The allegation about Colin Kahl, the Pentagon's under secretary for defense policy, is being made by Sens. Marco Rubio, of Florida, and Roger Wicker, of Mississippi.

This is the first time that Kahl has been named as the source of the leaks, which were given to reporters and appeared in news stories at CNN, Bloomberg, and The Washington Post, according to the Washington Free Beacon. 

Last month, a Chinese spy ballon traversed the U.S. before being shot down off the South Carolina coast. 

The Trump administration allegedly did not know about the Chinese balloons until after it was replaced by the Biden administration.

In a letter sent Wednesday to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the senators write: "It remains unclear whether this leak was cleared internally through the proper channels. Either way, it was a brazen attempt to shift blame."

Senate Republicans in 2021 unanimously opposed Kahl's nomination to the Pentagon under secretary post, reportedly, at least in part, over his support for the Iran Nuclear Deal and criticism of Trump administration policies. 

Wicker and Rubio also wrote Kahl must be held "accountable for his politicization of previously classified material."