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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBarr's ability to declassify could put at risk a CIA informant close to Vladimir Putin (NYT)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/24/us/politics/trump-barr-declassify-intelligence.htmlBarrs Newfound Power Could Prompt Clash Between Justice Dept. and C.I.A.
By David E. Sanger
May 24, 2019
WASHINGTON President Trumps order allowing Attorney General William P. Barr to declassify any intelligence that sparked the opening of the Russia investigation sets up a potential confrontation with the C.I.A., including over the possible implications for a person close to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia who provided information to the C.I.A. about his involvement in Moscows 2016 election interference.
The concern about the source, who is believed to be still alive, is one of several issues raised by Mr. Trumps decision to use the intelligence to pursue his political enemies. It has also prompted fears from former national security officials and Democratic lawmakers that other sources or methods of intelligence gathering among the governments most closely held secrets could be made public, not because of leaks to the news media that the administration denounces, but because the president has determined it suits his political purposes.
Mr. Trump granted Mr. Barrs request for sweeping new authorities to conduct his review of how the Trump campaigns ties to Russia were investigated. The president ordered the C.I.A. and the other intelligence agencies to cooperate, granting Mr. Barr the authority to unilaterally declassify their documents and thus significant leverage over the intelligence community.
Intelligence officials have feared before that their findings were being twisted to political agendas notably concerns during the run-up to the Iraq war that information about Saddam Husseins alleged weapons of mass destruction was being cherry-picked to justify combat. But Mr. Trumps decision is different.
It allows Mr. Barr, who has used the charged term spying to describe efforts to investigate the Trump campaign, sole discretion to declassify the intelligence behind the F.B.I.s decision to begin investigating whether any Trump aides or associates were working with the Russians. It also raises the specter that officials ranging from the F.B.I. to the C.I.A. to the National Security Agency, which was monitoring Russian officials, will be questioned about their sources and their intent.
The order could be tremendously damaging to the C.I.A. and other intelligence agencies, drying up sources and inhibiting their ability to gather intelligence, said Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
The president now seems intent on declassifying intelligence to weaponize it, Mr. Schiff said in an interview.
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Barr's ability to declassify could put at risk a CIA informant close to Vladimir Putin (NYT) (Original Post)
dalton99a
May 2019
OP
Could putin have put traitortrump up to giving Barr free rein to 'help' putin clean house?
empedocles
May 2019
#1
empedocles
(15,751 posts)1. Could putin have put traitortrump up to giving Barr free rein to 'help' putin clean house?
SHRED
(28,136 posts)2. Barr, tRump, and the GOP
They are all steeped in laundered rubles.
This is a Russian coup.
Turbineguy
(37,356 posts)3. Damaging?
Now they'll do it for sure.
Pantagruel
(2,580 posts)4. Source probably already "neutralized"
Probably the top quid pro quo awarded to Putin by Trump.
atreides1
(16,084 posts)5. I get it, now!
Trump is giving Barr this authority, so that when Barr ends up revealing US intelligence sources, Trump will have leverage over any report that Barr releases!!!
All US intelligence agencies are going to have to make a decision, and it isn't a easy one!!!
tblue37
(65,456 posts)6. Yet another impeachable offense against the US. nt