Critics say Republican Representative John Ratcliffe is too inexperienced and too political to become US director of national intelligence (AFP Photo/ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS)
Paul Handley, AFP: Trump nominee sparks worries of intelligence politicization
Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump's choice of a lawmaker with limited experience to oversee the massive US intelligence community has sparked concerns over the possible politicization of crucial national security decisions.
Trump announced the nomination Sunday of Republican Representative John Ratcliffe to replace Dan Coats as Director of National Intelligence, the person who coordinates the 17 agencies that make up the US intelligence community.
Coats is leaving after 24 months during which Trump has regularly ignored and undermined his spy chiefs, keeping them in the dark especially on his plans for relations with Russia.
While the departure is not a surprise, the choice of Ratcliffe has sparked worries among lawmakers.
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WNU Editor: I had to laugh when I read this analysis from AFP. The U.S. intelligence community has always been politicized, and Presidents always stack the upper echelons of the community with their loyalists. What has been different in the past two and a half years is that some in the community appear to have made it a mission to target President Trump when he was running to be President, before he took the oath of office, and I would say even when he became President.
Why is this even news? Of course it’s political-it’s always political. Every appointment is political by all parties and presidents.
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