President Donald Trump attacked his own intelligence chiefs today after they contradicted his statements about the status of threats posed by Iran, North Korea and other countries. Trump called the intelligence chiefs “wrong” and “passive and naive.” He also said that these seasoned intelligence officials might need to go back to school. It is worth noting that the testimony of these officials were not only quite measured but widely shared by experts in the field.
Trump seemed most angry over the testimony of National Intelligence Dan Coats and CIA Director Gina Haspel. Coats testified for example “We do not believe Iran is currently undertaking activities we judge necessary to produce a nuclear device.” Haspel said the evidence shows that North Korea “is committed to developing a long-range nuclear-armed missile that would pose a direct threat to the United States.”
After the intelligence chiefs testified before Congress, Trump went to Twitter to blast his own appointees, insisting “The Intelligence people seem to be extremely passive and naive when it comes to the dangers of Iran. They are wrong!” He also told his own appointees “Be careful of Iran. Perhaps Intelligence should go back to school!”
It is a bizarre moment since, if Trump thought these top intelligence people are passive and naive, one would think that he would replace them.
Something I have wondered about: Twitter is a privately owned company, is it not? Why couldn’t Twitter just cancel Trump’s account and take him off the air? Is there any legal requirement that Twitter has to let everyone have an account?
Might make for less stress and heartburn in our country.
I think Twitter has specific rules as to the circumstances that would lead to the cancellation of an account. Stupidity isn’t one of those conditions.
Yes, but those are Twitter’s own rules, which they could rescind or amend whenever they felt like it.
Mueller has terabytes of data on Roger Stone. Mueller had most of it before the raid at Stone’s house. But he got some of it during the raid. Chances are that a fair bit of the data traces Stone’s connections to sources of dark money.
Also, Stone’s case has been declared a “complex case” as well as related to the hacking indictment case against the twelve GRU officers. The designation “complex case” usually applies to criminal conspiracies–especially ongoing criminal conspiracies.
Recently there was a show on CNN memorializing Gilda Radner who was a Saturday Night Live character many years back. I think someone needs to get a tape of several of her shows which concern the Iran topic. There is a certain song which she sang on the air and millions of Americans sang it thereafter. We must not forget it. Here is my recollection of some of the lyrics:
“Bomb, bomb, bomb…bomb bomb Iran!
Oh, bomb Iraaaan!
I’ll take my staaaand!
Rockin and a rolling… rocking and a reeling…
BOMB IRAN!
A timely and appropriate quote from the McCarthyism era: “We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home”. The intel chiefs should be focusing on domestic enemies to the Constitution, more than any foreign enemies.
The antonym for passive is active. The antonyms for naïve are as numerous as the senses of naïve. Supposing that Trump’s use of the term naïve indicates a lack of skepticism about Iran foregoing its nuclear ambitions, then Trump would seem to be goading our intel chiefs into active skepticism about Iran foregoing its nuclear ambitions. Unfortunately, that interpretation makes Trump sound suspiciously reasonable. You see, our several intel chiefs are, and have been, just as actively skeptical about Iran foregoing its nuclear ambitions as they have been about North Korea foregoing its nuclear ambitions. What are intel chiefs are not yet willing to do is to give false testimony to Congress about Iran’s nuclear ambitions just because Trump wants them to do so. Thus wants Trump really wants are submissive toadies for intelligence chiefs. And that desire makes Trump naïve is one of the other many senses of the word naïve.
WoW, you are one of the best mind readers I’ve come across today!
That particular insight required no mind reading at all.
Was that your point as well?
And how much did Obergruppenfuhrer Mueller pay for the Feminazi Gestapo, 29-agent, 17-vehicle raid on Roger Stone’s house when Mueller could have just called Stone up and asked him to turn himself in?
I wonder if he’s out of control…perhaps melodramatic…no, a drama queen!
More hysteria and incoherence in America.
But but but …. what does that have to do with accurately assessing threats from Iran, North Korea, and ISIS ?
The “deep state” swamp is comprehensive in its effort to “contradict his statement” on everything. The “deep state,” “swamp,” “shadow government” does not want to change any aspect of its globalist strategy (which actually comports well with China’s and Russia’s) within any iterations of its DOJ/FBI/Intel structure.
“Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno.”
– Sine Nomine
Does this “Deep State” comprise those who don’t suck up to Trump or believe what he says?
Si correcto. Deep State wants to stay in the INF treaty so that we can still have leverage over Russia. George and Trump and Yosemite Sam Bolton want to pull out of the INF treaty so that Putin is free to intimidate NATO and renew the arms race against the US. Cold War 2.0 they call it. Anybody opposed to it is a Deep State Peacenik.
FOR SECOND TIME TODAY..
TURLEY IS PERPLEXED BY DONALD TRUMP
The professor writes: “It is a bizarre moment since, if Trump thought these top intelligence people are passive and naive, one would think that he would replace them”.
As usual the professor comes from the perspective of baffled observer. A political novice, with no previous knowledge of Trump, might read this column and agree: “It is ‘bizarre’ for a president to publicly attack his own appointees”.
But this has been Trump’s presidency since Day ‘1’. He is constantly attacking people in rash, mindless tweets. Even GOP congressional leaders have been attacked by Trump. So it’s scarcely surprising that Trump would attack his own appointees.
Trump has doubted U.S. Intelligence at international forums. It’s his way of saying, “Shut up”. The government shutdown was a form of “Shut up”. Trump was telling Federal employees to just, “Shut up & git outa here”.
Then, by denying the shutdown’s effects, Trump was telling the country to “Shut up”. Professor Turley covered that today in a column regarding opinion polls. Trump will be remembered for telling everyone to just, “Shut up & git outa here”.
Professor Turley is polite, disciplined, and diplomatic, including toward mentally dysfunctional folks, as we all should be.
I don’t think Turley is perplexed…it looks he’s sent Trump a message…to replace the staff he doesn’t agree with. Bad thing to do though…..
He’s setting up the left for another ambush. They are stupid enough to fall into it onece again. The real target will be the ones that need exposing and then destroying.
Nothing new
Stupid is as stupid does.
“Coats testified for example ‘We do not believe Iran is currently undertaking activities we judge necessary to produce a nuclear device.'”
*****************************
Maybe Trump needs to give his “intelligence” officers a subscription to the Times of Israel where one Iranian general threatens to “erase Israel off the global political map.” “The Israelis will not have even a cemetery in Palestine to bury their own corpses.”
Maybe the general will wish them off the map. I’m sure the “Death to America” gang of thugs wants only the best for us.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-general-says-tehran-aims-to-wipe-israel-off-the-political-map-report/
Let’s thank member of the “Israel First” brigade mespo for admitting, via its absence, any proof whatsoever that Coats’ testimony is wrong. Instead the same, old, tired, loathsome “anti-Semite” smoke screen regurgitated ad infinitum to beat all non-Israel-firsters into submission.
Pray tell, exactly and specifically, if Israel is “wiped off the map” this very minute, exactly how does any American’s life suffer tomorrow morning or EVER? CRICKETS. Nation come and go, and maps change all the time. Google how many countries disappeared off the map in the last decade. You’ll be surprised. Mespo must be a hater and promoter of mass death of persons represented by those nations, because he never raised a finger in protest. No nation, even the USA and Israel, have any RIGHT TO EXIST. The alleged right to exist ends when someone or something arises to eliminate that nation, it’s people, and/or it’s borders. This is the nature of things and of life, and it’s never going to change just because many naive, stupid, and obedient Americans scream in unison that nation X has a “Right To Exist!”
The USA, via its proxy wars in Yemen and Syria, has incinerated and orphaned tens or hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians. The difference is these victim’s relatives don’t hold purse strings and a MSM noose around the neck of innocent Americans, brainwashed into believing that apparently America knew no joy or security till the US and the League of Nations invented Israel by force and threat of force.
American needs Israel for absolutely, positively nothing good. I don’t wish any harm to anyone on earth, including those who call Israel home. But Americans should agree with George Washington, who proscribed in his Farewell Address, “…no permanent foreign entanglements…” Absolutely nothing in the Constitution requires or advises Americans to mettle in world international affairs. All the alleged good “reasons” for foreign military excursions (over 800 foreign military bases) are the SOURCE of America’s problems overseas.
All Americans should take GW’s cue.
Pray tell, exactly and specifically, if Israel is “wiped off the map” this very minute, exactly how does any American’s life suffer tomorrow morning or EVER? CRICKETS.
I personally wouldn’t suffer if someone dismembered you with a dagger, wire-clippers, and an electric saw. I tend to disapprove of that sort of thing, however.
Typical drivel from an Israel-firster. Thanks for confirming exactly my point of how utterly useless is Israel to the US. We’re talking about US blood and treasure employed to support one of the richest and most capable nations on earth, BTW.
Another embarrassing point of fact Re. Israel and how useless it is even to so-called “Israelis:” One of the tenets justifying the US and LON inventing Israel by force and threat of force was that “Jews need a homeland for their personal security.” In point of fact, more than half the world’s Jews have no need nor use for Israel, because they choose to live elsewhere.
I see the NPC is running another script.
Her Highness remains a staunch Trump supporter right alongside Mr. Kurtz. Just wait till he weighs in. You have my sympathy in advance.
“Israel wiped off the map” means that the ground is still there, but the street signs and maps don’t say “Israel” any more. It does not necessarily mean anyone was harmed in the process, though usually people are unfortunately harmed when nations disappear.
Did not some Americans likely suffer when ten or so nations disappeared off the map in the last decade? Probably yes. I agree with GW, who warned we should avoid getting involved in such events on a national level, using American blood and treasure to steer world events.
Let’s have an informed debate on this subject instead of suggesting persons be tortured who disagree. No, we CAN’T HAVE THAT reply Israel-firsters.
“Israel wiped off the map” means that the ground is still there, but the street signs and maps don’t say “Israel” any more. It does not necessarily mean anyone was harmed in the process”
***********************************
What does “The Israelis will not have even a cemetery in Palestine to bury their own corpses” mean? A prospectus for mortuary investment?
Naivete’ doesn’t begin to describe it.
I agree that the topic is fraught, but must be discussed. However, I believe the regime in Iran has shown itself to be a psychotic America hater wholly separate from its hatred of Israel. Maybe you’re right that this was “caused” by U.S. foreign policy, but I don’t particularly care: I want my country to protect itself from these psychos!
Princess wrote “American needs Israel for absolutely, positively nothing good.” which is the same verbiage the left uses when it comes to abortion…..”an unplanned pregnancy” is inconvenient, difficult, a burden, its not viable, etc
Whats a life to you? Unless if its yours of course
https://www.aim.org/aim-column/media-silent-on-democrats-abortion-bills/
Media Silent on Democrats’ Abortion Bills
“Meanwhile in Virginia, Del. Kathy Tran, D-Fairfax, has introduced legislation that would allow abortions through 40 weeks of pregnancy – beyond full term. Conservative media has run wild with the video of Tran being questioned on her legislation by Republican Todd Gilbert, majority leader of the House of Delegates, admitting her bill would allow abortions up to the moment of birth – even after the mother had started dilating.
She since has deleted her social media accounts, adding to the sense this is legislation Democrats want to pass before anyone takes notice.
“How late in the third trimester could a physician perform an abortion if he indicated that it would impair the mental health of the woman?” asked Gilbert, who represents the Blue Ridge counties of Shenandoah, Page, Rockingham and Warren.
“Or physical health,” Tran interjected.
“OK, I’m talking about mental health,” Gilbert said.
“I mean, through the third trimester,” Tran said. “The third trimester goes to 40 weeks.”
“OK, but at the end of the third trimester,” Gilbert asked.
“Yup. I don’t think we have a limit in the bill,” Tran said.
“Where it’s obvious that a woman is about to give birth, she has physical signs that she’s about to give birth, would that still be a point at which she could request an abortion if she was so certified? She’s dilating.”
“My bill would allow that, yes,” Tran said.
https://youtu.be/OMFzZ5I30dg
Nazis!
Princess Trohar:
“Pray tell, exactly and specifically, if Israel is “wiped off the map” this very minute, exactly how does any American’s life suffer tomorrow morning or EVER? ”
*********************
Well, to many Americans whose idea of international relations is a big night at Olive Garden probably not much. But to those of us who understand the world is a scary place especially in that ghetto known as the Mideast, it’s damn important. Israel is our most reliable democratic ally in the region. They fly our planes, shoot our guns and employ sophisticated weapons of war of their own. The battle-tested Israelis courageously sit in an Arab cesspool of terrorists, zealots and arms merchants hellbent to cripple our influence in the region by terminating Israel with extreme prejudice. These antisemitic orcs do this because they despise the power of free people over their lives and perfectly embody all the mis-attributes of life of the hominids depicted in the State of Nature. Hobbes described it as “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” And he was spot on.
Israel is on the front line of that war. Her strategic importance is hard to over-state. The Israelis provide quality counter-terrorist intelligence, host unmanned US drone aircraft and serve as the region’s greatest check on Iran. Her anti-cyber warfare efforts are second to none and her cooperation in missile defense systems with the US has led directly to major upgrades in the US’s still-lagging replication of Israel’s Iron Dome Air Defense system pioneered by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries. Mossad (along with Aman and Shin Bet) via Kidon (nee Caesarea ) is the per-eminent intelligence/counter terrorism service in the world basically because they have to be. Without Israel, the day could come quickly when we get a hyper-sonic ballistic return on Obama’s $1.7 Billion ransom to that Mullah Mafia in Tehran. With the help of the unsurpassed courage of a precious few Jews, we might just keep people like you from going from 98.6 to 10,000 degrees in a few nanoseconds.
I could go on point by point but why cast more pearls.
False statements throughout the above post. George Washington never used the words “foreign entanglements” in his farewell address. That has been long-standing disinformation bandied about by leftists and isolationists. What Washington actually said in his farewell address was that he questioned why America should “entangle our peace and prosperity in the toils of European ambition.” Washington also said that “It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world; so far, I mean, as we are now at liberty to do it . . .” Note the word permanent. In other words, Washington was warning against the presumption of “permanent alliances,” and that no other nation may necessarily be considered always a friend or always a foe as a permanent state of foreign affairs. But despite your disinformation, it’s absurd for leftists to even bring up George Washington, since they abhor the founding fathers and the US Constitution.
Mr. Feldman, Princess Trohar is a die-hard Trump supporter. It’s not likely that she is also, as you imagine, a leftist. It remains a curiosity that Trump attracts so many supporters from the anti-Israeli crowd. It is not at all surprising that there are still right wing nut jobs who are anti-Israel.
The statement about NK is hardly surprising–no one ever said it was going to be easy but at least we are in dialogue which can only be seen as a good thing.
The statement about Iran not pursuing nuclear devices is surprising as it goes against their history and stated objectives. Wasn’t that the whole rationale behind the Iran deal? Now that we are out of the Iran deal and they are allegedly still not pursuing the development of nuclear devices, doesn’t that imply that pulling out was the right choice if the interim results are the same as when we were in the deal?
Maybe or maybe not but I definitely think it’s more than wise and prudent to err on the side of caution given Iran’s statements, actions and history and the potential implications for the Middle East.
We’ve been engaged in dialogue with North Korea for a long time. It is not a new development. Just more of the same old song and dance. Trump is no different from his predecessors with respect to our policy toward North Korea. Except for Trump’s decision to cancel joint military training operations with South Korea. That step put Trump well out of line with his predecessors.
Trump doesn’t read books. He gets his news from only one cable channel. I would be very frustrated trying to advise a President with such a shallow connection. Trump is relying on his instincts and life experiences coupled to low information content. The good news is that he has excellent instincts. For instance, he sees China the trading partner and global adversary as smart, cunning, self-interested and energetic. He understands that their vulnerability is a people who look around the world, as close as Taiwan and Hong Kong, and see people enjoying personal freedoms and legal rights. The Communist Party bureaucracy is vulnerable to a populist revolution such as took place in Ukraine and is taking place in Venezuela. Trump knows where China’s strategic vulnerabilities lie, and is not afraid to test them to maintain US competitiveness.
I can see where his advisors are worried about our adversaries collaborating to create a perfect storm to isolate the US. In classical geostrategy, you choose your battles carefully. Trump seems to delight in having dozens of conflicts going at once. It’s hard to imagine any of the Democrat presidential hopefuls being so mercurial and risk-affine. It’s possible Trump is chanelling Ronald Reagan, and expecting to achieve similar results — this time facing down Chinese crony-Communism.
Pbinca that leftish for stupid or those who never produce proof. Pbinca must be The Collective and it’s programmers a defective machine. Ad Machina No human presence here. So you want to post in this Blog like you do in leftish agitprops? Fix your broken machine. No way I’m treating a machine as if it were human. Ad Machina.
Uff Da! pbinca is not a leftist. pbinca is not a cog in the collective. pbinca plays for Team Trump. It’s hard to believe that you Trumpers can’t keep track of one another. And yet, the evidence is clear and convincing. Trumpers can’t recognize one another on a blog. Ha-ha!
As Iran issues multiple threats against US bases, our allies and the United States Itself and fires off new and ever improving missiles to demonstrate their ever increasing ability to carry out the threats, it’s difficult not to get angry when people in key positions of trust, positions that decide matters of life and death for Americans, turn on this country and endanger Americans with obvious lies and abject stupidity for a political agenda.
This reminds me of one of those homicide reality shows I saw one time where a suspect, a hardened drug dealing gangster was being interrogated by a straightlaced detective with an affinity for platitudes, for killing a man in what the drug dealer claimed was self defense. He told the detective the victim, a rival dealer had threatened to kill him multiple times, beat up a member of his family and on the night in question came to his home with what he thought was a weapon and began to kick in the door yelling I’m gonna get you mother f***er. The detective dismissed the gangsters fear as an overreaction and said to him “People say I’m going to kill you all the time. It’s an expression. Where I come from when people say they’re going to kill you, you take it with a grain of salt because they don’t really mean it.” Why didn’t you hide or run or call the police for help when he threatened you instead if shooting him?
The gangster looked the detective right in the eye and said “because where I come from, when someone tells you they’re going to kill you, they mean it.”
It is a dangerous delusion for those in charge of keeping America safe to think Iran has suddenly had a miraculous change of heart, decided Americans are sweet and good, cancelled their Death to America jihad and want to get together with everybody as friends at the UN to make daisy chains and sing Kumbaya. But that isn’t really what is going on. They don’t really think that. It’s looking more and more like the Deep State Leftists mission is now to destroy this country out of revenge and violent psychotic hatred for Americans and Trump for not installing Hilary to complete their leftist agenda. Because things are not proceeding as smoothly as planned they are using whoever from wherever as mercinaries, foot soldiers and like minded enemies of this country to accomplish their mission. The only thing that matters for Leftists DeRp State Democrats now is killing this country and American Citizens who defy them.
Sane Americans of all persuasions better start taking the situation they have put this country in very seriously because the reality is, they mean it.
The United States has more than enough nuclear weapons to retaliate against Iran. And the Iranians know, just as well as the North Koreans do, that if they ever deploy nuclear weapons against the United States then they and their country will face nuclear retaliation.
If and when Iran gets nukes, there isn’t just the issue of U.S. deterrence.
A nuclear-armed Iran would would likely spark a Middle East nuclear arms race.
I think it’s unlikely that the Saudis would sit back and not go for their own nukes.
The Egyptians may have, or develop, nuclear ambitions but they might not currently have the financial ability to go down that road.
Israel has had nuclear weapons for roughly forty years or so by now. The Iranians and The Iraqis under Saddam Hussein are, so far, the only Middle Eastern nations that have dabbled in nuclear weapons development. And their motivation for doing so probably had more to do with suspicion against one another than fear of Israel. Besides, the Iraqi nuclear program turned out to be mis-over-estimated.
If and when Iran goes nuclear, I still think that Saudi Arabia and possibly others would go the same route.
S.A. fears encroachment by a non-nuclear armed Iran, and a nuclear-armed Iran would likely push the Saudis to develop their own nukes.
They view Iran and Iranian expansionism as their biggest threat.
There’s been endless debate about how long it would take Iran to go nuclear, especially if they scrapped all current restraints.
In the case of Iraq, after the first Gulf War U.S. leaders and the American intel community were said to be startled by how far along Iraq actually was in their nuclear program.
If Saddam had postponed his invasion of Kuwait until after he had nukes, he probably would have been able to annex and kept Kuwait.
Trump is going to pull out of the INF treaty. That will give Putin the excuse he needs to intimidate our NATO allies with intermediate range nuclear missiles. That will renew the arms race formerly known as the super-power conflict during the cold war. Meanwhile, Trump is also restoring Russia’s influence in The Mid-East by pulling US troops out of Syria leaving Russian troops behind to hold down the fort for Bashir Al-Assad while Iran is free to pivot towards the Iraqi Shi’ites in the Basra region. Do you not see it yet, Tom? It’s called Cold War 2.0. And it is the avowed policy of both Putin and Trump.
Trump is a moron and mountebank whom we have to pay attention to only inasmuch as he wields authority as president. But there is a way that he has also been able to exert a psychological influence considerably beyond his merits on millions of Americans at every social echelon, at every level of privilege and intellectual training. That part has to go. It should have a long time ago. We ought to be mortified at what jackasses we’ve been to have allowed this malignant imbecile to mesmerize us with his fusillades of idiocy. Please no more Hissy Fit Nation or Trump Derangement Syndrome. Follow his actions, and his words when they are also sufficiently important that they constitute political actions. In my view this one does not fall remotely into that category. Who gives a f87k what he thinks of the intelligence agencies? Let him founder on his temper tantrums.
Never contradict Trump. Only losers are contradicted. Losers can’t be President thus only Trump knows the facts. He got them from Jared, the evil Saudi prince and Netanyahu.
The same entities Obama must have gotten his “facts” from when he got us involved with Syria and Yemen — the latter of which turned us into war criminals.
“I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration in Andy’s office – that there’s no way he gets elected – but I’m afraid we can’t take that risk.”
“It’s like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before you’re 40.”
“We’ll stop it.”
– Peter Strzok to his paramour Lisa Page in the office of FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.
Are you presuming that Strzok spoke for all or even most of the FBI?
“The texts mean what the texts say.”
– Lisa Page to Congress
Touche, George
I think you mean George is a douche.
Orange Swamp-Thing has his own self-serving agenda to consider, reality be damned.
“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”
– William Casey, CIA Director
“I want to splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it to the winds.”
– President John F. Kennedy
The CIA almost certainly killed JFK, in return for the sentiment you aptly describe. Michael Piper’s (RIP) book on the subject is a good read.
Since JFK’s assassination, several times the world’s top rated sharp shooters have attempted to replicate Lee Oswald’s kill shots with the same type rifle Oswald allegedly used, and every single time they failed. Oswald had failed his first one or two attempts to pass shooting class in the US military. There is no record of him ever becoming a world class shooter. The last known time he had “practiced” shooting the subject rifle was months or years prior to JFK’s death. The only range with a long distance rifle target was many miles from his home. Lastly, and none of this is in dispute, the exact subject rifle was a cheap piece of dung with unreliable single-shot ejection. And that’s on top of the kill shots themselves being impossible to recreate with the world’s best marksmen. IOW known, undisputed, modern science positively disproves the commonly believed story of JFK’s kill shots. Sharp shooters who failed to replicate the shots to a moving target at the specified speed, used a rifle that properly ejected spent shells, not the broken piece of dung Oswald allegedly used.
I would not be surprised if the Mafia and Israel helped kill JFK. JFK had just forbade Israel to go nuclear, knowing what would result, our current state of constant threat of nuclear winter. Israel’s founders absolutely promised, after going nuclear, to start nuclear winter if anyone ever threatened to take their land.
Father Joe Kennedy conspired with his Mafia friends to convince a high ratio of Protestant union members, who generally strongly disliked/distrusted Catholics, to vote for John. You gotta admit it’s strange, bordering on bizarre, that one of John’s and AG brother Bobby’s first moves was to start tossing the same Mafia-related Union bosses into prison who helped elect John. Not the best way to say, “Thank you!”
“The CIA almost certainly killed JFK …”
**********************
I doubt it. It was a successful operation.
“I doubt it. It was a successful operation.”
_____
That is a fact.
Since JFK’s assassination, several times the world’s top rated sharp shooters have attempted to replicate Lee Oswald’s kill shots with the same type rifle Oswald allegedly used, and every single time they failed.
No clue how these witless memes start. You can on Youtube find ordinary people hitting targets at that distance with ordinary rifles. The limousine was not moving rapidly at all.
In September 1963, Castro gave a speech at the Brazilian Embassy.
He said that if the U.S. leaders persisted in trying to kill Cuban leaders, that ” they themselves would not be safe.”
A couple of months later, JFK was assassinated.
Oswald expressed a desire to defect to Cuba, and had visited both the Cuban and Russian embassies in Mexico City shortly before the assassination.
A top Russian diplomat had the Russian Embassy had a background of involvement in assassinations.
If one wanted to build a conspiracy theory tying these threads together, it would not be difficult to do.
The comment that JFK made about smashing the CIA into a thousand pieces was likely a result of JFK’s anger at being suckered by the CIA in the aftermath of the Bay of Pigs disaster.
Kennedy did fire Allen Dulles by the end of the year, but there is no indication that he actually intended to “smash” the CIA. His relationship with Dulles’ successor, John McCone, seemed to be good.
An off-the-cuff comment by JFK blowing off steam did not result in any followup action against the CIA as an organization.
Some of the details of Oswald’s visits to Mexico City were only recently released with the last batch of declassified documents.
Many of the even basic facts of the CIA’s plots to kill Castro were not known to members of the Warren Commission.
LBJ and others were concerned that focusing to closely on an Oswald/ Cuba/ Soviet comnection would incite Americans to demand retaliation against Cuba and/or the USSR.
Barely a year earlier, we had the Cuban Missile Crisis, and LBJ and the intelligence agencies were not looking for any kind of a replay of that.
In the immediate aftermath of the JFK shooting, a “first thought” of many Americans was the reputation of Dallas as a hotbed of extremism.
Gen. Edwin Walker was based there, and had a following. Adlai Stevenson had been heckled, spat on, and hit over the head with a placard
on his visit to Dallas month before the assassination.
They were “Wanted for Treason” posters with JFK ‘s picture on them, and a full page ad sarcastically headlined “Welcome to Dallas, Mr. President”, followed by a list of JFK’s alleged treacherous acts.
JFK saw the ad the morning of the assassination and remarked that “we’re heading into nut country today”.
Before details about Oswald and his background started to come out a few hours later, there was a widespread perception that one of those Walker-like “nuts” was responsible for shooting Kennedy.
Oswald’s unusual, flakey background gave rise to questions about possible Soviet or Cuban involvement, and the “Walker-type nut suspect” no longer fit.
One of the earliest defenders of Oswald and critics of the Warren Commision was Mark Lane, a pro-Soviet New York lawyer.
He worked very hard trying to cast doubt on the fact that a defector to the USSR and a pro-Communist sociopath killed JFK.
Had the assassin fit the “proper” mold; that is, had the Oswald been a redneck racist, Lane would have likely found the conclusion that Oswald killed Kennedy to be perfectly acceptable.
But extreme left-wing activists like Lane would have none of it if the assassin in any way was a pro-Communist misfit who had defected to the Soviet Union, and who tried to defect again.
Lane’s motivation was not a concern about Oswald himself, or clearing Oswald’s “good name”.
He wanted to shift possible suspicion that the Soviets or the Cubans were in any way involved in the assassination.
I don’t think there is sufficient evidence to implicate Russia or Cuba, any more than I think there’s suffient evidence to implicate the CIA, LBJ, the mob, Clay Shaw, Mr. X or General Y in the assassination.
There’s a regular smorgasbord of different and competing theories involving the JFK assassination, “something for everyone”, depending on different inclinations and political leanings.
I think the Warren Commision’s conclusion that Oswald acted alone is correct, but given the amount of rampant speculation over the years, there seems to be no consensus by the public with respect to which of the assassination theories is correct.
“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”
– William Casey, CIA Director
JFK was shot from the right front.
__________________________
“A close examination of the Zapruder film or frames, shows that Jackie started moving back inside the limo BEFORE Clint Hill reached her. That’s because she was going after a piece of the President’s head, not seeking help from Clint Hill.”
– Gerry Simone
____________
“Hargis was just a few feet behind Kennedy when shots rang out in Dealey Plaza on Nov. 22, 1963. The president’s blood splashed the young officer’s face and uniform.”
-Dallas Evening News
At 313 of the Zapruder film, and in frames that are immediately after 313, the back of JFK’s head is intact.
The ejecta of blood, bone, and brain tissue are seen in an upward cloud toward the front of Kennedy, consistent with the exit wound toward the right side/ front of his skull.
Bullet fragments found around the windshield frame match the bullet that struck his head.
Other photographic evidence shows the Secret Service agents in the car behind Kennedy’s looking back and up over their right shoulders, toward the upper floors of the Texas Book Depository.
The c. 4 hour long autopsy confirmed the location of the entrance and exit wounds to the head.
JFK was shot from the right front.
JFK had two bullet wounds,
One ran in a downward trajectory through his neck. Leaving aside the signatures of an exit wound v. an entrance wound, the only way he’s wounded from the front is if someone was crouching down in the jump seats in front of him firing at him.
As for his head wound, gunshot wounds have front spatter and back spatter. The former has a much larger volume than the latter. We know from oral testimony and from the photographic evidence that the front spatter landed on Gov. Connolly and his wife, and the back spatter (a fine liquid mist) landed on a motorcycle cop riding behind the limousine).
There are many good reasons to distrust the CIA and its entrenched Deep State (or Invisible Government) operatives. Here are just a few of the CIA’s colossal “SNAFUs” or intentional failures (depending on how deeply you examine these events):
The Bay of Pigs
The Cuban Missile Crisis
The Iranian Revolution
Fall of the USSR
The September 11, 2001 Attacks
Weapons of Mass Destruction
The Arab Spring
“I will splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it into the wind.” — President John F. Kennedy
But as JFK and America soon found out, that’s far easier said than done.
Shortly after JFK’s assassination, former President Harry S. Truman wrote the following in a Washington Post editorial on December 22, 1963:
“For some time I have been disturbed by the way the CIA has been diverted from its original assignment.” “It has become an operational and at times a policy-making arm of the Government. This has led to trouble and may have compounded our difficulties in several explosive areas.”
I would add that the US was covertly grooming the Gulenists in Turkey as an “alternative” should fundamentalist Islamists gain despotic control. This was a classic
CIA FUBAR.
The Turkish “silent Gulenist coup” is much discussed among Western intelligence as a 21st century phenomenon which every democracy faces as a vulnerability….that is…for plotters to secretly and gradually move loyalists into all positions of governmental, educational, judicial, and cultural power, then operate as a deep-state, beyond effective control from elected pols.
If you want to know more about this phenomena, read Dexter Filkin’s “The 30 Year Coup” (appeared originally in The New Yorker).
The intelligence community isn’t doing much better than Trump, or Trump’s 2 predecessors. I give you weapons of mass destruction on Iraq, not to mention the absurd political objectives, if any exist at all with regard to Iraq, Syria or for that matter Afghanistan, Libya and Yemen.
Trump didn’t start any of those wars. Can’t these goof balls start a war with rational political objectives that are in our interests. It doesn’t look like it.
The rational policy objective that you are asking for is to avoid the renewal of the super-power conflict formerly known as The Cold War. Both Trump and Putin are looking for a new nuclear arms race so that Russian influence on the world stage can be restored beginning, especially, in The Mid-East, but moving on from there to the intimidation of our NATO allies by means of intermediate range nuclear missiles currently banned under the INF treaty that Trump will pull out of real soon.
“On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
H.L. Mencken
Trump as usual is speaking as a pragmatic leader unburdened by the group think of the very liberal deep state careerists that inhabit DC and it’s environs. Turley, living in that same bath water thinks the same way as these people. Trump may well replace them, but what he is telling them is to get a clue or they will be out. Does anyone besides the DC knuckleheads think that Iran has given up it’s nuclear ambitions? The interesting question is why would Hasel make her statement now just after Trump has let it be known that he is planning a second summit. Another attempt at undermining Trump’s foreign policy by the oh so wrong deep state? Like these peoples’ “foreign policy” has been so successful over the last 20 years. There is a reason the State Dept is known as “foggy bottom” and it has nothing to do with it’s location.
“unburdened by the group think”
That is, unencumbered by study or analysis, listening only to His Gut and the talking heads on Fox.
It’s okay to falsify intelligence to start a war that the President wants to fight. It’s not okay to falsify intelligence to avoid starting a war that the President wants to fight.
The last people successfully to invade Iran were The Mongols in the thirteenth century. Chances are that our intel chiefs know that fact. If they don’t, then the Israelis do.
Thus we have the “L4B- established” guidelines for what’s “OK” and what is “not OK” regarding the falsification of intelligence to start or avoid stating a war.
[Retroactive Sarcasm Alert]
Besides, the intel chiefs did not testify falsely to Congress on this occasion, most likely because Trump wanted them to testify falsely to Congress on this occasion.
It isn’t really possible to tell when you are being intentionally silly, or unintentionally silly.
They both blend together seemlessly in your comments.
The first “okay” alluded to the WMD excuse for The Iraq War. The second “not okay” was a parody of Trump’s complaint against his own intelligence chiefs. There was nothing “silly” intended by the observation that nobody has successfully invaded Iran since Ghengis Khan, nor that Trump might not know that.
My comment was not about your history lesson on Ghengis
Kahn and Iran.
It was about the fact that your comments are silly, whether you intend them to be or not.
Don’t expect readers to try to sort out which of your comments are intentionally silly, and those comments by you that are intended to be serious that sound equally silly.
Silly? I’m not the one pulling out of the INF treaty. Trump is. Why? Because Putin wants to intimidate NATO and restore Russia’s influence in The Mid-East and beyond, just like it was in old days of The Cold War. And Trump is enabling Putin. Because Trump is Putin’s co-dependent.
The complete phrase is “Foggy Bottom Fairys.” It goes back to WWII and refers to the Ivy League bigots, racists and sexists etc. Common phrase in the 60’s as well along with REMFs. Rear Echelon M…. F…. ers. But you sensitive types can say mother fathers.
They’re Foggy Top, too!
Enter Obama, exit obama now we have the terminator exposing and destroying but really are they enemies domestic? I don’t believe they qualify as domestic given their foreign ideology.