It should be beyond reason for Donald Trump to nominate someone who is a clear and present danger to our intelligence community to be Director of National Intelligence (DNI). Yet, that’s exactly what Trump has done. Texas Representative John Ratcliffe has a history of attempting to discredit our national intelligence organizations,1 the same ones that Trump has re-nominated him to run.
Ratcliffe is so ill-qualified to be assigned this vital post that he already failed as a nominee last year after facing bipartisan opposition in Congress. Now, thanks to his unwavering loyalty to Trump during the impeachment hearings, he’s been nominated as DNI once again.
In addition to his disregard for America’s intelligence community – a disregard that includes spreading conspiracy theories about their work2 – Ratcliffe has repeatedly lied about his qualifications for the post. He made false claims about his involvement in a massive immigration crackdown and greatly exaggerated his role in a high-profile terrorism case while working as a prosecutor in Texas.3
Someone who lies so egregiously about events that are easily fact-checked has no right to be guiding the most sensitive and secure information passing through our government.
The DNI’s role requires that person to be above any partisan politics – it’s crucial in order to keep our country safe. But Ratcliffe is far more interested in becoming one of Trump’s most valuable allies than doing what the job would require.
In solidarity,
- Sarah, Digital Campaigns Associate
[1] “The GOP Says It Has Evidence of a Secret Society at the FBI—but No One is Allowed to See It.” Newsweek, 01/25/2018.
[2] “Ibid.” Newsweek, 01/25/2018.
[3] “Trump’s pick to lead U.S. intelligence claims he arrested 300 undocumented immigrants in a single day. He didn’t.” The Texas Tribune, 08/02/2019.
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