Former intelligence officials worry Trump will try to politicize and weaponize CIA

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: NBC News

Nov. 8, 2024, 5:00 AM EST


At the end of his first term in office, then-President Donald Trump sought to install Kash Patel, a hard-line MAGA loyalist, as deputy CIA director. But the head of the agency at the time, Gina Haspel, a career intelligence officer, threatened to resign in protest, and the appointment was scuttled.

Now, four years later, Patel is considered a possible pick for CIA director or another high-level national security post in a second Trump administration. And there likely will be no one to stand in his way this time.

Patel is one of several fiercely loyal political allies who President-elect Trump is considering to oversee the country’s national security. In his first term in office, Trump frequently clashed with his deputies and top officials, who he came to view as insufficiently loyal to his agenda.

This time, the president-elect is keen to fill his administration with people who will carry out his decisions without question, according to sources familiar with the transition process.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/former-cia-officials-worry-trump-politicize-weaponize-intelligence-age-rcna179024

[Irish_Dem]

7. CIA doesn't seem to be the brightest bulbs do they?

They are worried about it?

They better be extracting assets and burning classified intel as we speak.

[sarisataka]

2. Doubtless he will put his cronies

in every major position. He wants loyalty like Hitler had.

[intrepidity]

3. Hmmm

What was their first clue?

Gotta admit, nothing gets by these sharp folks.

[Ohioboy]

4. Trump is going to weaponize everything he can

Isn't that what he tried to do the first time, but was stopped by people who had values. This time around those people won't be there.

[jojog]

5. I hope Biden gets our operatives out of harm's way before next admin

[keithbvadu2]

6. The Director of the CIA will be known as the Commissar of the CIA.

[Jit423]

8. The CIA ought to be equipped with the resources and patriotism to avoid this.

But then, who knows? They may want to be politicized since many already agree with MAGA Trumpism.

[moniss]

9. Of course he will and

it was done under others like Nixon and Reagan. Former military people went into the CIA and then came out and partnered up with Birchers and billionaires and founded various "non-profit" policy groups that were merely front organizations for raising funds for supporting "our chosen terror groups" like the Contras and others around the world. Even conservatives from foreign governments said those various "front groups" were a collection of fascists, white supremacists, all around racists and neo-Nazis. When you look at who the funders were and who was involved they cross paths again and again such as Roy Cohn. He didn't end when McCarthy did.

The short version of the story is that rabid anti-Communists formed the John Birch Society, as well as other groups, funded by wealthy people and run by connected people and they viewed "taking matters into their own hands" as the thing to do. Anything they didn't like they labeled as being part of the Communist conspiracy. We got McCarthy and the House Un-American Activities Committee and they were off to the races because they now not only had money but they had the political figures they recruited into their cause. Of course they became a natural beacon for the racists and white supremacists etc. and before long these groups were using members who had been in intelligence to conduct spying operations on activists and others. They would then provide these "files" to the FBI and police as well as to the various political figures so they could "leak" supposedly damning details to "friendly" journalists. These groups also knowingly worked to contravene laws passed by the US and to carry out covert operations against foreign policy that they disagreed with. Nixon knew and so did Reagan. The pretend acting of Reagan that he didn't know about most of Iran-Contra is laughable and was at the time.

These groups never really get penalized because they are set up to purposely have enough separation to have a defense about not knowing even as laughable as it is. They are still here today and have blossomed into a huge patch of a tangled web with each other.

[SoCalDavidS]

10. I'm Thinking He's Not Going With Garland nt

[Starfury]

11. CIA will just be the tip of the iceberg...

Think DHS, FBI, NSA, IRS, etc.

[Evolve Dammit]

12. Ya think? Dog we are a stupid society. "Willfully ignorant" and proud of it.

[travelingthrulife]

13. He said he would do just that. Is that a big enough hint for cia?

maybe they should have worked a little harder on Putin's shenanigans as he worked to install all these lunatics around the country.

[wss2001]

14. How many foreign assets will we lose?

I bet assets we have working against Russia and China and Saudi Arabia are in a bit of panic. The are probably scrambling to get out, hoping in the lasts weeks of this administration to be ferreted out of their respective countries. It will take decades to get back what we will lose in the coming four years on so many levels…

[niyad]

15. try"???

And here I thought my idiots had been cluelesss twits.

[Autumn]

16. Of course he will. They had 4 years to make sure what trump did could

not be done again. And they did nothing.

[Martin68]

17. He may try, but from the beginning of his first term in office he insulted the CIA continually. He publicly stated

he had more confidence in Putin than the CIA. They remember that, and they are an impenetrable bureaucracy, built around secrecy and deceit. Trump doesn't have a chance.

[not fooled]

18. I sure hope you're right

it would be nice to see a part of the government president musk can't wreck.

[johnnyfins]

19. I said in an earlier post

It would be wonderful if one of these "Career Officials", that is in danger of being replaced by a TSF lackey, would spill the tea on ALL things Trump. As long as it doesnt endanger lives.