SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Mike Pompeo, seen here in 2011, said Thursday that the CIA is "going to become a much more vicious agency." (Photo: Gage Skidmore/flickr/cc)
Under Trump, Brags Mike Pompeo, CIA Will Be 'Much More Vicious Agency'
Trump "has promised that he will have our backs," says CIA head
Oct 20, 2017
According to Mike Pompeo, the agency he leads--which has supported coups across the globe, engaged in targeted killings, and led a detention and torture program--has not been nasty enough.
Speaking Thursday at a Foundation for Defense of Democracies forum, the CIA director, who has signaled suport for torture, said "we've now laid out a strategy for how we're going to execute our strategy with incredible vigor. We're going to become a much more vicious agency in ensuring that we are delivering this work. We are going to go to the hardest places with some of the hardest people and of our organization to crush it."
President Donald Trump, he said, "has promised that he will have our backs and that he will resource us."
Addressing the threat posed by Kim Jong-un, Pompeo said the North Korean leader's "end-state... is the continued capacity to go to sleep in a really nice bed in Pyongyang every night."
He said "we ought to behave as if we are on the cusp of them achieving [their] objective" of hitting the U.S. with a nuclear capability. Pompeo also said there should be focus on "the enormous conventional weapon systems put in the hands of this man, and the other elements of their nuclear program and other delivery technologies of those nuclear weapon systems."
Asked by a Financial Times reporter what would happen if Kim Jong-un "kicked the bucket for whatever reason," Pompeo said, "you know, given the history of the CIA, I'm just not going to talk about that. Someone might think there was a coincidence if, you know, there was an accident," he said to laughter from the crowd. "It's just not fruitful. We have a clear U.S. policy. It is an effort to diplomatically and economically challenge the North Korean regime in such a way that they won't get to that end-state."
He also said section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act "was skewed by Edward Snowden," adding that he's "very hopeful that Congress will renew" the surveillance authority, which is set to sunset at the end of the year unless Congress renews it. Digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation, meanwhile, has called it a "key legal linchpin for the National Security Agency's vast Internet surveillance program."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
According to Mike Pompeo, the agency he leads--which has supported coups across the globe, engaged in targeted killings, and led a detention and torture program--has not been nasty enough.
Speaking Thursday at a Foundation for Defense of Democracies forum, the CIA director, who has signaled suport for torture, said "we've now laid out a strategy for how we're going to execute our strategy with incredible vigor. We're going to become a much more vicious agency in ensuring that we are delivering this work. We are going to go to the hardest places with some of the hardest people and of our organization to crush it."
President Donald Trump, he said, "has promised that he will have our backs and that he will resource us."
Addressing the threat posed by Kim Jong-un, Pompeo said the North Korean leader's "end-state... is the continued capacity to go to sleep in a really nice bed in Pyongyang every night."
He said "we ought to behave as if we are on the cusp of them achieving [their] objective" of hitting the U.S. with a nuclear capability. Pompeo also said there should be focus on "the enormous conventional weapon systems put in the hands of this man, and the other elements of their nuclear program and other delivery technologies of those nuclear weapon systems."
Asked by a Financial Times reporter what would happen if Kim Jong-un "kicked the bucket for whatever reason," Pompeo said, "you know, given the history of the CIA, I'm just not going to talk about that. Someone might think there was a coincidence if, you know, there was an accident," he said to laughter from the crowd. "It's just not fruitful. We have a clear U.S. policy. It is an effort to diplomatically and economically challenge the North Korean regime in such a way that they won't get to that end-state."
He also said section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act "was skewed by Edward Snowden," adding that he's "very hopeful that Congress will renew" the surveillance authority, which is set to sunset at the end of the year unless Congress renews it. Digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation, meanwhile, has called it a "key legal linchpin for the National Security Agency's vast Internet surveillance program."
According to Mike Pompeo, the agency he leads--which has supported coups across the globe, engaged in targeted killings, and led a detention and torture program--has not been nasty enough.
Speaking Thursday at a Foundation for Defense of Democracies forum, the CIA director, who has signaled suport for torture, said "we've now laid out a strategy for how we're going to execute our strategy with incredible vigor. We're going to become a much more vicious agency in ensuring that we are delivering this work. We are going to go to the hardest places with some of the hardest people and of our organization to crush it."
President Donald Trump, he said, "has promised that he will have our backs and that he will resource us."
Addressing the threat posed by Kim Jong-un, Pompeo said the North Korean leader's "end-state... is the continued capacity to go to sleep in a really nice bed in Pyongyang every night."
He said "we ought to behave as if we are on the cusp of them achieving [their] objective" of hitting the U.S. with a nuclear capability. Pompeo also said there should be focus on "the enormous conventional weapon systems put in the hands of this man, and the other elements of their nuclear program and other delivery technologies of those nuclear weapon systems."
Asked by a Financial Times reporter what would happen if Kim Jong-un "kicked the bucket for whatever reason," Pompeo said, "you know, given the history of the CIA, I'm just not going to talk about that. Someone might think there was a coincidence if, you know, there was an accident," he said to laughter from the crowd. "It's just not fruitful. We have a clear U.S. policy. It is an effort to diplomatically and economically challenge the North Korean regime in such a way that they won't get to that end-state."
He also said section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act "was skewed by Edward Snowden," adding that he's "very hopeful that Congress will renew" the surveillance authority, which is set to sunset at the end of the year unless Congress renews it. Digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation, meanwhile, has called it a "key legal linchpin for the National Security Agency's vast Internet surveillance program."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy