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DNI Ratcliffe has broken his promise to keep politics out of intelligence, intelligence veterans say
Source: Washington Post
DNI Ratcliffe has broken his promise to keep politics out of intelligence, intelligence veterans say
By Shane Harris
10/8/2020, 7:57:47 p.m.
When he was nominated to become director of national intelligence, then-congressman John Ratcliffe (R-Tex.) confronted accusations from Democrats and intelligence veterans that a vocal political ally of President Trump was ill-suited to lead the nation’s intelligence community, which prides itself as apolitical and nonpartisan.
“Regardless of what anyone wants our intelligence to reflect, the intelligence I will provide, if confirmed, will not be altered or impacted by outside influence,” Ratcliffe, who had been the president’s ardent defender during impeachment proceedings, said at his confirmation hearing in March.
But Ratcliffe, who had no significant background in intelligence, failed to meet his commitments when he recently declassified documents that included sensitive intelligence about Russians discussing Hillary Clinton and her 2016 presidential campaign, current and former officials said.
Ratcliffe’s disclosures, which he told lawmakers came “at the direction of the president of the United States,” amount to a disinformation operation run by the nation’s top intelligence official, in service of a president who has long accused the intelligence agencies of conspiring against him, the current and former intelligence officials said.
“What we are seeing here is the worst-case scenario that was raised by the Democrats during Ratcliffe’s confirmation of putting such a political loyalist and national security neophyte into this important position,” said Marc Polymeropoulos, a former CIA officer who oversaw operations in Europe and Russia. “He is cherry-picking intelligence, and seriously risks exposing sources and methods for absolutely no reason other than to promote and protect the president before the election.”
-snip-
By Shane Harris
10/8/2020, 7:57:47 p.m.
When he was nominated to become director of national intelligence, then-congressman John Ratcliffe (R-Tex.) confronted accusations from Democrats and intelligence veterans that a vocal political ally of President Trump was ill-suited to lead the nation’s intelligence community, which prides itself as apolitical and nonpartisan.
“Regardless of what anyone wants our intelligence to reflect, the intelligence I will provide, if confirmed, will not be altered or impacted by outside influence,” Ratcliffe, who had been the president’s ardent defender during impeachment proceedings, said at his confirmation hearing in March.
But Ratcliffe, who had no significant background in intelligence, failed to meet his commitments when he recently declassified documents that included sensitive intelligence about Russians discussing Hillary Clinton and her 2016 presidential campaign, current and former officials said.
Ratcliffe’s disclosures, which he told lawmakers came “at the direction of the president of the United States,” amount to a disinformation operation run by the nation’s top intelligence official, in service of a president who has long accused the intelligence agencies of conspiring against him, the current and former intelligence officials said.
“What we are seeing here is the worst-case scenario that was raised by the Democrats during Ratcliffe’s confirmation of putting such a political loyalist and national security neophyte into this important position,” said Marc Polymeropoulos, a former CIA officer who oversaw operations in Europe and Russia. “He is cherry-picking intelligence, and seriously risks exposing sources and methods for absolutely no reason other than to promote and protect the president before the election.”
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/dni-ratcliffe-has-broken-his-promise-to-keep-politics-out-of-intelligence-agency-veterans-say/2020/10/08/2dded958-0985-11eb-9be6-cf25fb429f1a_story.html
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