For John, BLUF: The Senate remembers it is in charge. Nothing to see here; just move along.
From the McClatchy Washington Bureau we have Reporter Ali Watkins looking at a closed-door meeting between US Senators and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Mr John Brennan. The headline is "New sparks fly between CIA, Senate Intelligence Committee".
The dateline is 12 September.
WASHINGTON — Tensions between the CIA and its congressional overseers erupted anew this week when CIA Director John Brennan refused to tell lawmakers who authorized intrusions into computers used by the Senate Intelligence Committee to compile a damning report on the spy agency’s interrogation program.For those of you looking to see this as a parochial fight, the story only mentions Democrat Senators. This is a case of the Senate waking up to who it is supposed to be and acting that way. There is a reason the Congress is mentioned before the Executive in the US Constitution.The confrontation, which took place during a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, came as the sides continue to spar over the report’s public release, providing further proof of the unprecedented deterioration in relations between the CIA and Capitol Hill.
Regards — Cliff
The Congress needs to remember the fundamental mission of the Central Intelligence Community and not use this fight as a way to manage the day-to-day operations of such an organization. The last thing we need is a bunch of lawyers on capital hill thinking they can play spy from the comfort of their committee seats.
ReplyDeleteTo this end Hollywood has not been a true ally to the US because the facts are much more severe than the fiction in films. The men and women who give their lives for the country need to know that their immediate future is in the hands of others with the same commitment who have experience with the dangers they face.
We don't need legislatures who only risk the danger of a major paper cut trying to run ops on the ground where Bowie knives are standard issue. Someone really important might get hurt.