Tag Archive for: intelligence community

Tulsi Gabbard Revokes Nearly 40 More Security Clearances In Wake Of Russiagate Fallout

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Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard announced Tuesday that she pulled 37 security clearances from former and current intelligence professionals.

Gabbard claimed they “abused public trust by politicizing and manipulating” information in a post on X. Several were connected to the assessment of alleged Russian influence in the 2016 election ordered by former President Barack Obama, the New York Post (NYP) first reported.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) memo named 37 intelligence professionals who allegedly “engaged in some or all” of several specific forms of misconduct. These included disregarding standard tradecraft practices, politicizing and misusing intelligence and failing to protect classified information, according to the memo.

“The President has directed that, effective immediately, the security clearances of the following 37 individuals are revoked,” the memo stated

“Their access to classified systems, facilities, materials, and information is to be terminated forthwith. Any contracts or employment with the U.S. Government by these 37 individuals is hereby terminated. Any credentials held by these individuals must be surrendered to the appropriate security officers,” the document continued.

The 37 individuals include ex-Principal Deputy DNI Stephanie O’Sullivan and Vinh Nguyen, both of whom reportedly helped Obama DNI James Clapper build the since-debunked 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment on Russia’s supposed “preference for President-elect [Donald] Trump” over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election, according to the NYP.

Several others named in Tuesday’s announcement were connected to that ICA report, according to the outlet. Some endorsed a September 2019 statement backing House Democrats’ initial impeachment inquiry into Trump.

Gabbard addressed the second security clearance revocation directly in her post on X.

“Being entrusted with a security clearance is a privilege, not a right. Those in the Intelligence Community who betray their oath to the Constitution and put their own interests ahead of the interests of the American people have broken the sacred trust they promised to uphold,” Gabbard wrote.

“In doing so, they undermine our national security, the safety and security of the American people and the foundational principles of our democratic republic.”

Samantha Vinograd, formerly the assistant secretary for counterterrorism, threat prevention, and law enforcement policy at the Department of Homeland Security during former President Joe Biden’s administration, also had her security clearance revoked.

Vinograd previously worked on Obama’s National Security Council and signed an open letter urging Trump to disclose his business interests during the 2016 campaign, according to The New York Times.

Andrew Miller, previously part of Obama’s National Security Council and Biden’s deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, likewise had his security clearance revoked.

Loren DeJonge Schulman, previously a senior adviser to Obama national security adviser Susan Rice, and Beth Sanner, who previously served as vice-chair of Obama’s National Intelligence Council, lost their clearances.

AUTHOR

Ashley Brasfield

Reporter

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Tulsi Gabbard Reveals Plans To ‘End Politicization’ Of Intel Agencies On Day One In Office

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President Donald Trump’s Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Tulsi Gabbard, will prioritize ending politicization of the Intelligence Community (IC) and restoring transparency, according to a list of priorities obtained by the Daily Caller.

The Senate confirmed Gabbard as DNI on Wednesday. Her day one priorities highlight politicization and the need for unbiased intelligence collection.

“End politicization of the IC and ensure clear mission focus to the IC on its core mission of unbiased, apolitical collection and analysis of intelligence to secure our nation” the document reads.

She assailed weaponization of the intelligence community during her confirmation hearing’s opening statement, citing Trump’s reelection as a “clear mandate” to end weaponization of the intelligence agencies.

She specifically pointed to the 51 former national security officials who signed a letter implying the New York Post’s Hunter Biden laptop story was a “Russian information operation.” That was proven false and Trump recently revoked the officials’ security clearances.

Gabbard will also work to restore trust “through transparency and accountability,” the document said, calling the priority a “national security imperative.”

Two Republican senators who were initially hesitant to support Gabbard, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Maine Sen. Susan Collins, cited the ODNI’s bloated size in their endorsements of Gabbard.

Collins said in a statement that the ODNI is too expansive and that Gabbard shares her “vision of returning the agency to its intended size.”

Gabbard will also work to “address efficiency, redundancy, and effectiveness across ODNI to ensure focus of personnel and resources is focused on our core mission of national security” on day one.

Gabbard will also prioritize assessing threats and identifying gaps in intelligence.

“Assess the global threat environment and where gaps in our intelligence exist, integrate intelligence elements, increase information-sharing, and ensure unbiased, apolitical, objective collection and analysis to support the President and policymakers’ decision-making,” the document reads.

She also plans to collaborate with Congress, specifically the Senate Intelligence Committee, on these issues. Senators expressed frustration about intelligence failures during her meetings, citing a “lack of responsiveness” to information requests, according to the document. There have been several major intelligence blunders under past DNIs, including the Afghanistan withdrawal and terrorists taking over Syria after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

The document also referenced “failures to identify” the origins of COVID-19. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) said in January that it now believes the virus came from a lab in China, according to The New York Times. The agency reached this determination with “low confidence.” This typically indicates that the agency making the determination lacked sufficient credible information or had concerns or issues regarding their sources, according to the DNI’s website.

“Lt. Col. Gabbard looks forward to working with Senators and the Intelligence Committee directly on those issues,” the document concludes.

AUTHOR

Eireann Van Natta

Intelligence state reporter.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.