Nation's Top Former Intelligence Officials Join to Issue a Stunning Rebuke
to Trump.
By Fred Kaplan, Slate
17 August 2018
The nation's top former intelligence officials come together to issue a
stunning rebuke to Trump.
One of two things happened on Thursday, depending on your point of view.
Either some of the nation's top retired military and intelligence officers
publicly criticized President Trump in very strong terms-an uncharacteristic
act for almost all of them-or the "deep state" is closing in.
The denunciations came in two waves.
Earlier in the day, retired Adm. William McRaven wrote an op-ed for the
Washington Post, protesting Trump's revoking of former CIA Director John
Brennan's security clearance and declaring-as if in an open letter to Trump
himself-"I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security
clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who
have spoken up against your presidency."
McRaven is a former Navy SEAL and commander of U.S. Special Operations
Command who oversaw the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. By all accounts,
he is as apolitical as they come and had not publicly criticized Trump, or
any previous president, until now.
The op-ed continued: "Like most Americans, I had hoped that when you became
president, you would rise to the occasion and become the leader this great
nation needs. . Your leadership, however, has shown little of these
qualities. Through your actions"-which he later described as "McCarthy-era
tactics"-"you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us
on the world stage and worst of all, divided us as a nation."
One former senior intelligence official who read the op-ed sent me an email:
"Takes my breath away. This is BIG!!!" Another wrote, again on background,
that fellow officers-retired and active-duty-will take this as a sign of a
major rupture in civil-military relations, brought on by Trump's blatant
disrespect for national security officials and the entire security system.
Then, late on Thursday night, 12 former CIA directors and deputy directors
released a similar statement. By coincidence, the statement was written a
few hours before McRaven's op-ed appeared, according to two of the
organizers.
The intelligence officials stopped short of asking Trump to revoke their
clearances-that idea hadn't come up in conversation. But like McRaven, they
defended Brennan's integrity and denounced Trump's action as having "nothing
to do with who should and should not hold security clearances-and everything
to do with an attempt to stifle free speech."
The statement went on: "We have never before seen the approval or removal of
security clearances used as a political tool, as was done in this case,"
adding that "this action is quite clearly a signal to other former and
current officials" to stay silent. It noted that some of the signatories
agree with Brennan's long string of critical statements about Trump, while
others do not. However, they all agree that decisions on security clearances
"should be based on national security concerns and not political views."
It was a bipartisan statement. Four of the signers served during Republican
administrations; six served Democrats; two served presidents from both
parties. More to the point, the vast majority of them are not accustomed to
making political statements of any sort, much less direct criticisms of a
sitting president.
The ex-officials include William Webster, Porter Goss, Gen. Michael Hayden,
and John McLaughlin (those who served Republicans); Leon Panetta, Gen. David
Petraeus, Gen. James Clapper, Michael Morell, Avril Haines and David Cohen
(those who served Democrats); and George Tenet, and Stephen Kappes (who
served presidents of both parties).
More significant, seven of the 12-Webster, Goss, Hayden, McLaughlin,
Clapper, Morell, and Kappes-were career intelligence officials. One,
Petraeus, was a career combat commander. [Update, Aug. 17, 2018, 12:10 a.m.:
Just before midnight, a 13th ex-director, Robert Gates-another career CIA
official who has served under several presidents of both parties-added his
name to the statement. He had been inaccessible, until then.]
One of the signers told me that some who signed the statement did so
reluctantly, given the long-standing principle that intelligence and
military officers should remain apolitical. However, the consensus was that
Trump's behavior has gone beyond the pale.
No one could recall any precedent for either of the two protests. Trump and
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders have denounced Brennan in
vicious terms. Sanders has also, in the last month, threatened to revoke the
security clearances held by Hayden and Clapper for critical remarks they
have made about Trump. It will be interesting to see if she and Trump decide
to go after well-known war heroes like Petraeus and McRaven.
One of the signers told me the statement was circulated to all living
ex-directors and deputy directors at noon on Thursday, with a request to
reply by 6 that night. The names of four former directors are not on the
letter: former President George H.W. Bush, John Deutch, Adm. William
Studeman, and James Woolsey. It could not be ascertained, either by me or by
one of the organizers, whether they declined to sign the statement or simply
hadn't seen it by the deadline.
Here is the complete text of the ex-intelligence leaders' statement:
August 16, 2018
STATEMENT FROM FORMER SENIOR INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS
As former senior intelligence officials, we feel compelled to respond in the
wake of the ill-considered and unprecedented remarks and actions by the
White House regarding the removal of John Brennan's security clearances. We
know John to be an enormously talented, capable, and patriotic individual
who devoted his adult life to the service of this nation. Insinuations and
allegations of wrongdoing on the part of Brennan while in office are
baseless. Since leaving government service John has chosen to speak out
sharply regarding what he sees as threats to our national security. Some of
the undersigned have done so as well. Others among us have elected to take a
different course and be more circumspect in our public pronouncements.
Regardless, we all agree that the president's action regarding John Brennan
and the threats of similar action against other former officials has nothing
to do with who should and should not hold security clearances - and
everything to do with an attempt to stifle free speech. You don't have to
agree with what John Brennan says (and, again, not all of us do) to agree
with his right to say it, subject to his obligation to protect classified
information. We have never before seen the approval or removal of security
clearances used as a political tool, as was done in this case. Beyond that,
this action is quite clearly a signal to other former and current officials.
As individuals who have cherished and helped preserve the right of Americans
to free speech - even when that right has been used to criticize us - that
signal is inappropriate and deeply regrettable. Decisions on security
clearances should be based on national security concerns and not political
views.
William H. Webster, former Director of Central Intelligence (1987-1991)
George J. Tenet, former Director of Central Intelligence (1997-2004)
Porter J. Goss, former Director of Central Intelligence, (2005-2006)
General Michael V. Hayden, USAF, Ret., former Director of the Central
Intelligence Agency (2006-2009)
Leon E. Panetta, former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(2009-2011)
General David H. Petraeus, USA, Ret., former Director of the Central
Intelligence Agency (2011-2012)
James R. Clapper, former Director of National Intelligence (2010-2017)
John E. McLaughlin, former Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
(2000-2004)
Stephen R. Kappes, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(2006-2010)
Michael J. Morell, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(2010-2013)
Avril Haines, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(2013-2015)
David S. Cohen, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(2015-2017)
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