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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
To deliver intelligence to Trump, DNI Tulsi Gabbard eyes creative solutions
By any fair measure, Donald Trump's second term has been challenging for U.S. intelligence agencies. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, for example, recently fired the leaders of the National Intelligence Council because it dared to produce accurate information the president didn't like. That coincided with reports of a Trump appointee trying to politicize intelligence, the White House moving forward with a 'major downsizing' at U.S. intelligence agencies, and the president's recent decision to fire the leadership of the National Security Agency, a key intelligence gathering department, as well as the National Security Council's director for intelligence. But perhaps most important is the fact that Trump tends to ignore intelligence briefings and reports, as NBC News reported that Gabbard is exploring new ways to 'revamp' his intelligence briefings in order to bring them in line with 'how he likes to consume information.' From the report: One idea that's been discussed is possibly creating a video version of the PDB that's made to look and feel like a Fox News broadcast, four of the people with direct knowledge of the discussions said. ... One idea that has been discussed is to transform the PDB so it mirrors a Fox News broadcast, according to four of the people with direct knowledge of the discussions. Under that concept as it has been discussed, the national intelligence director's office could hire a Fox News producer to produce it and one of the network's personalities to present it; Trump, an avid Fox News viewer, could then watch the broadcast PDB whenever he wanted. I can appreciate why this might seem amusing, but NBC News wasn't kidding. The same report noted that one insider envisioned a new presidential daily briefing that would include 'maps with animated representations of exploding bombs, similar to a video game,' apparently in the hopes of capturing the president's attention. 'The problem with Trump is that he doesn't read,' said one person with direct knowledge of the PDB discussions. Of course, that's only part of the problem. Not only does the Republican avoid reading briefing materials, he also doesn't want to receive in-person, oral presentations of intelligence, either. Politico reported last month that Trump, during his second term, 'has sat for just 12 presentations from intelligence officials of the President's Daily Brief,' which represents 'a significant drop' compared with the Republican's first term, and a vastly smaller number than the presentations for recent Democratic presidents. Time will tell whether Gabbard's creative solutions are implemented — how intelligence officials would give a Fox News producer the necessary security clearance would be an interesting challenge — but hanging overheard is the inconvenient fact that Trump doesn't seem to want intelligence briefings. His record on this is long and unambiguous. During his transition process in 2016, for example, Trump skipped nearly all of his intelligence briefings. Asked why, the Republican told Fox News in December 2016, 'Well, I get it when I need it. ... I don't have to be told — you know, I'm, like, a smart person.' As his inauguration drew closer, Trump acknowledged that he likes very short intelligence briefings. 'I like bullets, or I like as little as possible,' he explained in January 2017. Around the same time, he added, 'I don't need, you know, 200-page reports on something that can be handled on a page.' Things did not improve once he was in power. In early 2017, intelligence professionals went to great lengths to try to accommodate the president's toddler-like attention span, preparing reports 'with lots of graphics and maps.' National Security Council officials eventually learned that Trump was likely to stop reading important materials unless he saw his own name, so they included his name in 'as many paragraphs' as possible. In August 2017, The Washington Post had a piece on then-White House National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, who struggled to 'hold the attention of the president' during briefings on Afghanistan. The article noted, '[E]ven a single page of bullet points on the country seemed to tax the president's attention span on the subject.' A Trump confidant said at the time, 'I call the president the two-minute man. The president has patience for a half-page.' In February 2018, the Post reported that Trump 'rarely, if ever' read the PDB prepared for him. Months later, the Post had a separate report noting that the CIA and other agencies devoted enormous 'time, energy and resources' to ensuring that Trump received key intelligence, but 'his seeming imperviousness to such material often renders 'all of that a waste.'' In early 2020, the Post reported that Trump missed the early alarms on the Covid threat in part because he 'routinely skips reading the PDB' and had 'little patience' for oral summaries of the intelligence. Exactly five years ago next week, The New York Times had a related report: The president veers off on tangents and getting him back on topic is difficult, they said. He has a short attention span and rarely, if ever, reads intelligence reports, relying instead on conservative media and his friends for information. He is unashamed to interrupt intelligence officers and riff based on tips or gossip. ... Mr. Trump rarely absorbs information that he disagrees with or that runs counter to his worldview, the officials said. Briefing him has been so great a challenge compared with his predecessors that the intelligence agencies have hired outside consultants to study how better to present information to him. It was an extraordinary revelation to consider: A sitting American president, in a time of multiple and dangerous crises, was so resistant to learning about security threats that his own country's intelligence officials sought outside help to figure out how to get him to listen and focus. Will Gabbard figure out a way to get Trump to care about information he doesn't want to receive? There's reason for skepticism. This post updates our related earlier coverage. This article was originally published on
14-05-2025
- Politics
Gabbard fires 2 top intelligence officials and will shift office that preps Trump's daily brief
WASHINGTON -- Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fired two veteran intelligence officials because they oppose President Donald Trump, her office said, coming a week after the release of a declassified memo written by their agency that contradicted statements the Trump administration has used to justify deporting Venezuelan immigrants. Mike Collins was serving as acting chair of the National Intelligence Council before he was dismissed alongside his deputy, Maria Langan-Riekhof. They each had more than 25 years of intelligence experience. The two were fired because of their opposition to Trump, Gabbard's office said in an email, without offering examples. 'The director is working alongside President Trump to end the weaponization and politicization of the intelligence community,' the office said. The firings, which were first reported by Fox News Digital, follow the release of a declassified memo from the National Intelligence Council that found no coordination between Venezuela's government and the Tren de Aragua gang. The Trump administration had given that as reasoning for invoking the Alien Enemies Act and deporting Venezuelan immigrants. The intelligence assessment was released in response to an open records request. While it's not uncommon for new administrations to replace senior officials with their own picks, the firings of two respected intelligence officials who had served presidents of both parties prompted concern from Democrats. U.S. Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he's seen no details to explain the dismissals. 'Absent evidence to justify the firings, the workforce can only conclude that their jobs are contingent on producing analysis that is aligned with the President's political agenda, rather than truthful and apolitical,' Himes said in a statement. Though it's not widely known to the public, the National Intelligence Council plays a key role in the nation's spy services, helping combine intelligence gathered from different agencies into comprehensive assessments used by the White House and senior national security officials. Collins was considered one of the intelligence service's top authorities on East Asia. Langan-Riekhof has served as a senior analyst and director of the CIA's Strategic Insight Department and is an expert on the Middle East. Attempts to reach both were unsuccessful Wednesday. The CIA declined to comment publicly, citing personnel matters. Gabbard also is consolidating some of the intelligence community's key operations, moving some offices now located at the CIA to ODNI buildings, her office said. They include the National Intelligence Council as well as the staff who prepare the President's Daily Brief, the report to the president that contains the most important intelligence and national security information. The move will give Gabbard more direct control over the brief. While the brief is already ODNI's responsibility, the CIA has long played a significant role in its preparation, providing physical infrastructure and staffing that will have to be moved to ODNI or re-created. Gabbard oversees and coordinates the work of 18 federal intelligence agencies. She has worked to reshape the intelligence community — eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs under Trump's orders and creating a task force to examine ways to cut costs and consider whether to declassify material relating to COVID-19 and other topics. Gabbard also has vowed to investigate intelligence leaks and end what she said was the misuse of intelligence for political aims.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gabbard fires 2 top intelligence officials and will shift office that preps Trump's daily brief
WASHINGTON (AP) — Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fired two veteran intelligence officials because they oppose President Donald Trump, her office said, coming a week after the release of a declassified memo written by their agency that contradicted statements the Trump administration has used to justify deporting Venezuelan immigrants. Mike Collins was serving as acting chair of the National Intelligence Council before he was dismissed alongside his deputy, Maria Langan-Riekhof. They each had more than 25 years of intelligence experience. The two were fired because of their opposition to Trump, Gabbard's office said in an email, without offering examples. 'The director is working alongside President Trump to end the weaponization and politicization of the intelligence community,' the office said. The firings, which were first reported by Fox News Digital, follow the release of a declassified memo from the National Intelligence Council that found no coordination between Venezuela's government and the Tren de Aragua gang. The Trump administration had given that as reasoning for invoking the Alien Enemies Act and deporting Venezuelan immigrants. The intelligence assessment was released in response to an open records request. While it's not uncommon for new administrations to replace senior officials with their own picks, the firings of two respected intelligence officials who had served presidents of both parties prompted concern from Democrats. U.S. Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he's seen no details to explain the dismissals. 'Absent evidence to justify the firings, the workforce can only conclude that their jobs are contingent on producing analysis that is aligned with the President's political agenda, rather than truthful and apolitical,' Himes said in a statement. Though it's not widely known to the public, the National Intelligence Council plays a key role in the nation's spy services, helping combine intelligence gathered from different agencies into comprehensive assessments used by the White House and senior national security officials. Collins was considered one of the intelligence service's top authorities on East Asia. Langan-Riekhof has served as a senior analyst and director of the CIA's Strategic Insight Department and is an expert on the Middle East. Attempts to reach both were unsuccessful Wednesday. The CIA declined to comment publicly, citing personnel matters. Gabbard also is consolidating some of the intelligence community's key operations, moving some offices now located at the CIA to ODNI buildings, her office said. They include the National Intelligence Council as well as the staff who prepare the President's Daily Brief, the report to the president that contains the most important intelligence and national security information. The move will give Gabbard more direct control over the brief. While the brief is already ODNI's responsibility, the CIA has long played a significant role in its preparation, providing physical infrastructure and staffing that will have to be moved to ODNI or re-created. Gabbard oversees and coordinates the work of 18 federal intelligence agencies. She has worked to reshape the intelligence community — eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs under Trump's orders and creating a task force to examine ways to cut costs and consider whether to declassify material relating to COVID-19 and other topics. Gabbard also has vowed to investigate intelligence leaks and end what she said was the misuse of intelligence for political aims. ___
Associated Press
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Gabbard fires 2 top intelligence officials and will shift office that preps Trump's daily brief
WASHINGTON (AP) — Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fired two veteran intelligence officials because they oppose President Donald Trump, her office said, coming a week after the release of a declassified memo written by their agency that contradicted statements the Trump administration has used to justify deporting Venezuelan immigrants. Mike Collins was serving as acting chair of the National Intelligence Council before he was dismissed alongside his deputy, Maria Langan-Riekhof. They each had more than 25 years of intelligence experience. The two were fired because of their opposition to Trump, Gabbard's office said in an email, without offering examples. 'The director is working alongside President Trump to end the weaponization and politicization of the intelligence community,' the office said. The firings, which were first reported by Fox News Digital, follow the release of a declassified memo from the National Intelligence Council that found no coordination between Venezuela's government and the Tren de Aragua gang. The Trump administration had given that as reasoning for invoking the Alien Enemies Act and deporting Venezuelan immigrants. The intelligence assessment was released in response to an open records request. While it's not uncommon for new administrations to replace senior officials with their own picks, the firings of two respected intelligence officials who had served presidents of both parties prompted concern from Democrats. U.S. Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he's seen no details to explain the dismissals. 'Absent evidence to justify the firings, the workforce can only conclude that their jobs are contingent on producing analysis that is aligned with the President's political agenda, rather than truthful and apolitical,' Himes said in a statement. Though it's not widely known to the public, the National Intelligence Council plays a key role in the nation's spy services, helping combine intelligence gathered from different agencies into comprehensive assessments used by the White House and senior national security officials. Collins was considered one of the intelligence service's top authorities on East Asia. Langan-Riekhof has served as a senior analyst and director of the CIA's Strategic Insight Department and is an expert on the Middle East. Attempts to reach both were unsuccessful Wednesday. The CIA declined to comment publicly, citing personnel matters. Gabbard also is consolidating some of the intelligence community's key operations, moving some offices now located at the CIA to ODNI buildings, her office said. They include the National Intelligence Council as well as the staff who prepare the President's Daily Brief, the report to the president that contains the most important intelligence and national security information. The move will give Gabbard more direct control over the brief. While the brief is already ODNI's responsibility, the CIA has long played a significant role in its preparation, providing physical infrastructure and staffing that will have to be moved to ODNI or re-created. Gabbard oversees and coordinates the work of 18 federal intelligence agencies. She has worked to reshape the intelligence community — eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs under Trump's orders and creating a task force to examine ways to cut costs and consider whether to declassify material relating to COVID-19 and other topics. Gabbard also has vowed to investigate intelligence leaks and end what she said was the misuse of intelligence for political aims. ___
Washington Post
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Trump belatedly wakes up to Putin's brutality
President Donald Trump in recent weeks, according to the Wall Street Journal, asked advisers if they think Russian dictator Vladimir Putin 'has changed since Trump's last time in office, and expressed surprise at some of Putin's military moves, including bombing areas with children.' You can almost excuse the question about Putin changing; Russia analysts have wondered whether Putin's long isolation during the pandemic altered his thinking and made him (even more) paranoid and reckless. Others have wondered whether Putin has some secret health issue affecting his actions and worldview. But Trump is surprised at the brutality and callousness of Russia's military aggression? Surprised? Now, I'm fairly certain that every morning the guy in the Oval Office gets this thing called the President's Daily Brief, packed to the gills with the best information that the $100-billion-per-year U.S. intelligence community can gather. Not that Trump appears to be particularly paying attention. In 2018, The Post reported that Trump 'rarely if ever reads the President's Daily Brief.' And according to the president's public schedule, he received just two of these in-person briefings per month in January, February and March, before settling into a more regular rhythm of once per week in April and May. Still, the U.S. government has rooms full of experts who have studied Putin and his circle for decades. They could tell Trump plenty. Or the president could just read news coverage. How on Earth at this late date can Trump be surprised to hear about Russian military aggression targeting civilians, including children? This is the fourth year of a war that saw Russian soldiers committing atrocities and killing children from the start. Last year, the United Nations estimated that on average, about 16 Ukrainian children were killed or wounded weekly. What has Trump been paying attention to in the past four years, scouting reports on Shedeur Sanders? Then again, this is the administration where Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, goes into meetings with Putin and relies on the Russian government's translator. To call it amateur hour is an insult to amateurs. At least amateurs have an excuse. There must be some curse that every U.S. president who deals with Putin will begin with jaw-dropping naïveté and give the Russian dictator the benefit of the doubt for far too long. Go all the way back to President George W. Bush describing his first meeting with the 'very straightforward and trustworthy' Putin in June 2001: 'I was able to get a sense of his soul, a man deeply committed to his country and the best interests of his country.' To offer a qualified defense of Bush, Putin had been Russian president for barely a year. But just how soulful did Bush think a former KGB lieutenant colonel was going to be? Russia's brutality in the wars in Chechnya, and Putin's role in the second one, was well known by then. When Barack Obama became president, joined by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, they believed we could rebuild a strong and friendly relationship Putin and the Russians — never mind the fact that Russia had just invaded the Republic of Georgia. Clinton unveiled the infamous 'reset button' — 'an emergency stop button that had been hastily pilfered from a swimming pool or Jacuzzi at the hotel,' according to Clinton's senior adviser Philippe Reines — which was supposed to say 'reset' in Russian but instead said 'overcharge.' (If you put that scene in a novel, people would complain it was an overdone metaphor.) In a 2012 presidential debate with Mitt Romney, who warned about the Russian threat, Obama scoffed: 'The 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back, because the Cold War's been over for 20 years.' Oh, that silly, paranoid Romney! By January 2013, Clinton was wrapping up her time as secretary of state and concluded that the outreach to Putin wasn't working and a tougher line was needed, but she wrote in her memoir, 'not everyone agreed with my relatively harsh analysis.' Then the country elected Trump, who rarely could hide his man-crush on the Russian dictator. Trump met with Putin in 2018, and his obsequious performance was so over the top that even longtime Trump allies such as Laura Ingraham, Newt Gingrich and the hosts of 'Fox & Friends' called him out over it. Joe Biden was supposed to be the guy in the White House who got tough on Putin, but in his opening year, Biden and his team kept emphasizing that they wanted a 'stable, predictable relationship' with Putin. Biden declined to pursue Putin's personal wealth through sanctions, increased U.S. imports of Russian oil and acquiesced to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany — at least until somebody, most likely the Ukrainians, blew it up. Then Biden let slip in January 2022 that a 'minor incursion' into Ukraine by the Russians might not spur a serious U.S. response. Putin invaded a month later, with his troops raping and murdering Ukrainian civilians a hallmark of the attack. And now we get Trump 2.0, surprised that Putin could be so nonchalant about innocent civilian casualties. Yes, Mr. President, the Russian military is perfectly willing to kill children to get what they want in this war. They bomb hospitals, they bomb schools, and either bad aim or sheer cruelty means their missiles and artillery bring roofs crashing down on elderly women, even in Russian territory. Trump is negotiating with a ruthless, remorseless foe — might be wise to start acting like it. This isn't just another real estate deal.
