A woman impersonated the wife of a GOP lawmaker and snuck into the congressional Republican retreat in Philadelphia Thursday, the same day President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence appeared, retreat organizers told lawmakers late Saturday.
The revelation came as the nonprofit Congressional Institute that organizes the retreat investigates how audio of the gathering leaked. In an email to GOP lawmakers, institute president Mark Strand did not directly say that the impersonator was the same person who leaked the audio, but that was the implication.
“The Congressional Institute is continuing to investigate this breach in order to fully understand how it happened and to ensure it does not happen again,” said Strand’s email, which was obtained by The Associated Press.
The audio was leaked to several news outlets and first reported by The Washington Post. It reveals lawmakers airing concerns about the practical difficulties and political risks of repealing and replacing President Barack Obama’s health care law, among other things.
There is also audio of a question-and-answer session with Pence, indicating that the intruder was in the same room as the vice president, which raises security concerns.
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