The National Security Agency – and the Pentagon – have placed political loyalists in key positions, where they could help recruit in behind-the-scenes fights, a concern that resurfaced this week. On the declassifying documents, which have been circulating for weeks.
Trump believes the documents in question will undermine the intelligence community’s unanimous finding that Russia intervened in the 2016 race to help him win, exposing so-called “deep state” conspiracies against his campaign and transition during the Obama administration, and many current ex-officials.
Both agencies have also cited concerns about the publication of cherry-picking information and the politicization of their work as they fight Ratcliffe’s recent efforts to satisfy Trump’s promises of declassification of thousands of pages of documents.
Multiple sources familiar with the classified material have denied the importance of these documents, telling CNN that the administration will not release them and politically pollinate them, despite the president’s assurances.
While Rutcliffe and former executive DNI. Richard Grenell has demanded the release of documents relating to the Russia investigation and Hillary Clinton’s emails, while CIA Director Gina Haspel and National Security Agency chief General Paul Nakaso have fought the move.
Behind the scenes, Haspel has defended the work of career officials who have come under criticism from Trump and allies behind an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election.
Haspel’s job is at stake when Trump speaks to loyalists
The stand-off has led to growing frustration with President Haspel, especially those who have been held responsible for the delay in releasing the documents, despite the fact that he and Ratcliffe have the discretion to disclose additional intelligence at their own discretion. At the end of the day, if Trump wanted these documents to be released, he could do it himself.
Legislators on both sides of the aisle, including Kentucky Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, have been trying to save Happel from Trump’s wrath in recent days, amid speculation of a possible removal of the CIA director.
Republican Sen. of Texas. John Corny voiced support for Haspel in a tweet on Tuesday: “Intelligence should not be biased. It’s not about manipulation, it’s about protecting impartial, non-partisan information to inform policymakers and therefore protect the US.”
The post prompted an immediate response from the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., who called Haspel a “trained liar.”
“Have you or @Markorubio or નેSenetMejlder discussed this with any of the admins who really work with them, such as @DNI_Ratcliffe or @MarkMeadows or @robertcobrien, to get their point of view, or you just lie to trained Just taking over? On everything? ”He tweeted McNeil and Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who serves as acting chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has been tagged.
While Haspel’s immediate future as director of the CIA is uncertain, Trump this week moved several political allies in the Pentagon and the National Security Agency into new roles – putting them in a career position that comes with civil service defenses. They can also have an immediate effect on the publication of classified documents.
Ellis is widely regarded as a partisan loyalist to Trump and has little experience with intelligence despite being promoted to the top White House national security lawyer under the president.
He was part of several White House controversies, including career officials, over information classified in a book written by former national security adviser John Bolton.
CNN previously reported that Alice GOP is under investigation for her alleged ringleader role in providing information to the rapist. The then-chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Devin Nunes of California, showed that foreign surveillance reports collected by the U.S. included members of Trump’s team. Intelligence.
Another former Nuns assistant, Kash Patel, will become acting defense secretary Chris Miller’s chief of staff, according to the administration and U.S. defense official.
The House’s impeachment probe found evidence linked to Patel’s diplomatic back channel led by Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, and attempts to spread conspiracy theories about Biden and forcing Ukraine to announce the former president’s investigation.
Ezra Cohen-Watnik, a third Trump loyalist with ties to Nuns, was also cast in a senior role at the Pentagon this week.
In his new post as Secretary of the Pentagon’s Intelligence Service, Cohen-Watnik, a military officer, could find differences with Nakasson if he were forced to publish additional classified material.
It remains to be seen whether Trump will eventually fire Haspel, but the rise of officials such as Ellis and Patel has raised concerns that the president is clarifying the way documents are released, despite previous objections from intelligence leaders.
“The motives of his recent move at DOD and NSA are vague and certainly speculative, although the partisan employees he has taken indicate he is stacking the deck, ultimately to win the fight over Intel’s further declassification related to 2016. Russian investigation,” Mark said. Polymoroplos, a former CIA official who oversaw operations in Europe and Russia before retiring last summer, told CNN.
“If he did the same at the CIA, install a new hyper-partisan director who would agree to further the declassification efforts, not only exposing and compromising highly classified resources and methods, but also discrediting the agency in the eyes of our international partners.” Simply put, it puts America at great risk, “he added.
Leading the House Republican campaign to disqualify classified documents
Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee have also fueled the rumor that Haspel personally prevented some documents from being released.
The panel’s top Republican Nunes repeatedly claimed on Lou Dobbs’ Fox business program last month, alleging that “this country’s intelligence services have been corrupted by their propaganda in the Democratic National Party and the media.”
According to a source familiar with the materials, some of the additional intelligence nuns want to publish, it is obtained from classified documents based on a report prepared by Republicans of the committee that became chairman in 2018.
The House Republican report on Russia’s investigation contradicts the intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia is trying to help Trump in the 2016 campaign, and raised issues about the tradecraft behind the intelligence assessment.
The Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee confirmed the intelligence community’s assessment in a bilateral investigation into Russia’s 2016 election interference.
Current and former officials have said that if something had been disclosed while being classified in the documents, it would have been included in the classified House or Senate reports and in a way that does not compromise with resources and methods.
Yet House Republicans and Trump still believe the information in these classified documents will help validate their criticism of the CIA and the FBI’s handling of the investigation – raising more questions about whether this is just a cherry-picked intelligence attempt.
Republicans on the House panel have long accused the CIA of blocking access to documents and encouraged Ratcliffe to declassify the material despite objections from the CIA and the National Security Agency, multiple sources told CNN.
In a letter sent to the inspector general of the intelligence community last month, Ratcliffe said he had asked for a formal declaratory review of the documents at Nuns’ request, but asked the watchdog to review whether the 2017 intelligence community’s assessment of Russian interference was sticking. For proper analytical tradecraft. “
At the same time, Republicans on the Senate Homeland Security Committee have accused Haspel of stoning Russia’s surveillance efforts by refusing to release requested CIA documents as part of the panel’s own review.
CNN’s Jeremy Herb contributed to the report.
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