White House Faces Blowback On UK 'Wiretapping' Accusations

The White House has said it will not be repeating accusations that the British Government Communications Headquarters, GCHQ, helped President Obama surveill Trump Tower, Prime Minister Teresa May's spokesman told the Guardian.

Later, in a press conference with Angela Merkel, President Trump made no apology for his administration promoting the claims, but shifted any questions or blame for the accusations to Fox News.

Press Secretary Sean Spicer, during Thursday's briefing, repeated claims, initially made by legal analyst Andrew Napolitano on Fox News, that Obama's alleged "wiretapping" of President Trump was conducted in coordination with the British spy agency.

No evidence thus far has emerged that Obama was involved in any direct surveillance of Trump's activities.

According to The Telegraph, Spicer, along with National Security Advisor H. R. McMaster, officially apologized to the British government for the comments. However, The Guardian's report says that Spicer did not offer a formal apology, though it confirms that White House said he will not repeat the claims.

“I don’t want to get into private conversations, but we’ve made clear to the administration that these claims are ridiculous and should be ignored,” the spokesman told the Guardian. “We’ve received assurances these allegations won’t be repeated."

He continued: "We have a close relationship which allows us to raise concerns when they arise, as was true in this case. This shows the administration doesn’t give the allegations any credence.”

The White House said in a statement Friday afternoon that Spicer "was simply pointing to public reports, not endorsing any specific story."

The claims were swiftly denied by British intelligence officials on Thursday, an unusual move, when Spicer first repeated them.

Gordon Corera, a BBC security correspondent, reported that a GCHQ spokesperson told him, "These allegations are complete and utter nonsense."

He continued: "They are utterly ridiculous and should be ignored."

Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images News/Getty Images