Johnson taps Rick Crawford to chair House Intel panel

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Thursday named Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., to serve as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

The appointment follows Johnson's announcement that he would not reappoint Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, to the post. Turner had been viewed as a supporter of the intelligence community and expansive surveillance powers.

“Our intelligence community and its oversight must maintain the highest levels of trust. The House Intel Committee will play a pivotal role in this work in the new Congress, and Rick Crawford will provide principled leadership as its chairman,” Johnson said, according to The Hill. “He has earned the respect of his colleagues through his years of faithful service on the committee and his steady approach to the challenges facing our country.”

Crawford, for his part, blasted what he called abuse of the nation's intelligence agencies that " eroded trust in our institutions and compromised America’s ability to gather intelligence."