The last time Trump attempted to name Rep. John Ratcliffe, Texas Republican as Director of National Intelligence, the White House had to pull his nomination. Ratclffe, according to multiple news reports had padded his resume with a false claims Ratcliffe claimed to have overseen the prosecution of terrorists in Atlanta. His former colleagues said he...
Category: ODNI
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Trump’s Intelligence Purge Targets the Government’s Corruption Watchdogs
President Trump’s purge of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence now extends to a larger assault on the inspectors general of the U.S. government. Trump has installed loyalist Richard Grenell as the Acting Director of the Office of National Intelligence but he is not seeking to purge the CIA or FBI, the “deep...
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Does Trump’s Purge of the Intelligence Community Make Us Less Safe?
Last month, Trump replaced the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) with the lightly-qualified Stephen Grenell, former ambassodr to Germany. Grenell proceeded to fire the head of the DNI’s counterterrorism center. This prompted some wailing from the national security establishment and predictable praise for Loras Shiao, the career official whom Grennell chose to replace Travers. Top...
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Opinion: Intel Chiefs Stay Silent on Trump’s Purge
Last month, I wrote a story of Trump’s machinations around the Office of Director of National Intelligence under the headline, “Trump’s Intelligence Rattles National Security Establishment.” Kent Harrington, former CIA officer and later an agency spokesman, uses the same word. “There is no question that Trump’s latest round of firings qualify as a ‘purge,'” he...
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Trump’s ODNI Shell Game: Keep a Loyalist in Top Intelligence Position
President Trump’s campaign to gain control of the U.S. intelligence community took a new old turn over the weekend. Trump nominated Texas congressman John Ratcliffe to serve as Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Last month, he named Richard Grenell, currently U.S. ambassador to Germany as acting DNI. Neither man has any intelligence experience. Grenell isolated...