Tag: CIA

Arrogant And Ignorant, Trump Is Making The World More Dangerous

The following article by Joe Conason was posted on the National Memo website March 14, 2018:

Representative Mike Pompeo (R-KS) testifies before a Senate Intelligence hearing on his nomination to head the CIA on Capitol Hill in Washington January 12, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

This planet just became a more dangerous place to live.

It may not have seemed so last week, when Donald Trump agreed to meet Kim Jong Un for negotiations over North Korea’s nuclear arsenal. Trump’s abrupt diplomatic offer was certainly an improvement on his jeering, boasting, and threatening on Twitter — even if he doesn’t understand that he gave away exactly what the dictator wanted most, without getting anything in return. The prospect of talks is almost always preferable to the possibility of war, which is why previous presidents consistently sought ways to engage the hereditary despots in Pyongyang Continue reading “Arrogant And Ignorant, Trump Is Making The World More Dangerous”

At CIA, a watchful eye on Mike Pompeo, the president’s ardent ally

The following article by Greg Miller was posted on the Washington Post website August 24, 2017:

CIA Director Mike Pompeo testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee in May. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

As CIA director, Mike Pompeo has taken a special interest in an agency unit that is closely tied to the investigation into possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign, requiring the Counterintelligence Mission Center to report directly to him.

Officials at the center have, in turn, kept a watchful eye on Pompeo, who has repeatedly played down Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and demonstrated a willingness to engage in political skirmishes for President Trump.

Current and former officials said that the arrangement has been a source of apprehension among the CIA’s upper ranks and that they could not recall a time in the agency’s history when a director faced a comparable conflict. Continue reading “At CIA, a watchful eye on Mike Pompeo, the president’s ardent ally”

Declassified report says Putin ‘ordered’ effort to undermine faith in U.S. election and help Trump

The following article by Greg Miller and Adam Entous was posted on the Washington Post website January 6, 2016:

Russia carried out a comprehensive cyber campaign to sabotage the U.S. presidential election, an operation that was ordered by Russian President Vladi­mir Putin and ultimately sought to help elect Donald Trump, U.S. intelligence agencies concluded in a remarkably blunt assessment released Friday. Continue reading “Declassified report says Putin ‘ordered’ effort to undermine faith in U.S. election and help Trump”

FBI in agreement with CIA that Russia aimed to help Trump win White House

The following article by Adam Entous and Ellen Nakashima was posted on the Washington Post website December 16, 2016:

FBI Director James B. Comey and Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr. are in agreement with a CIA assessment that Russia intervened in the 2016 election in part to help Donald Trump win the White House, officials disclosed Friday, as President Obama issued a public warning to Moscow that it could face retaliation. Continue reading “FBI in agreement with CIA that Russia aimed to help Trump win White House”