Ex-CIA Director: CIA would consider Kushner actions 'espionage'

Ex-CIA Director: CIA would consider Kushner actions 'espionage'

BY BROOKE SEIPEL - 05/27/17 08:01 AM EDT 1,569

Former acting CIA director John McLaughlan on Friday responded to reports that President Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner discussed setting up a secret communications line between Trump's transition team and the Kremlin, saying if such reports are true, it would be considered espionage.

"I don’t want to overstate this because obviously there is a lot we don’t know — we don’t know the exact content of the conversation. We don’t know the objective that was a part of the conversation — those things we don’t know," McLaughlan said on MSNBC's "The Last Word" Friday.

"But I can’t keep out of my mind the thought that, if an American intelligence officer had done anything like this, we’d consider it espionage.”

The president's son-in-law and senior adviser inquired about using Russian diplomatic facilities for the communications, apparently to shield the talks, U.S. officials briefed on intelligence reports told The Washington Post.

Russian ambassador to the U.S. Sergei Kislyak told his superiors that Kushner floated the idea during a meeting at Trump Tower on Dec. 1 or 2, according to the Post, which cited intercepts of Russian communications reviewed by U.S. officials.

Following the reports on Friday, the Democratic National Committee called for Kushner's immediate firing from his White House position.

When asked what his first reaction would be if reports are proven true, McLaughlan said he'd ask himself, "is this a prank?"

“[The reaction] would be kind of disbelief, because it’s not the sort of they think you would expect to happen in a normal transition," he said.

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefi...ith-russia-cia

LOL!! Having a private secure communication that can't be eavesdropped on by the NSA and the CIA that they aren't supposed to be monitoring to begin with is NOT ESPIONAGE. It's having a private secure communication line. According to the report the topics they wanted to discuss were cooperating on Syria and policy issues. Since the CIA started the damn civil war in Syria, and Trump wants the Russians to handle it so we don't have to, one can certainly appreciate why this administration during its transition would want communication lines the spooks in NSA and the CIA who started this damn war can't eavesdrop on, because their ears might burn, especially in discussions with Russia to try to end this war in Syria.

Our CIA has a rogue and rotten element. Same with the FBI and the NSA. They think for some erroneous reason they are "independent", that they have no elected boss, that they are running the show as technocrats. They aren't, not in our Republic. They are all answerable, accountable and report to the elected President of the United States on their daily activities, goals, missions and objectives. He tells them what to do and what not to do at his discretion and judgment. He is not only the President of the United States, he is the Executive in charge of the entire Executive Branch of government, and he is the Commander-In-Chief of all things relative to defense and national security, whether they like him or not, whether they agree with him or not.

These "leakers" are in a heap of trouble. They will be found out. They are going down. And when they decided to go after a General like Michael Flynn and a senior advisor like Jared Kushner, they've dug a hole so deep for themselves they will never climb out of it. Look at what Comey has done to himself. By the time Trey Gowdy and others get done with Comey, you won't recognize this Reptile. He'll be squealing and contorting so hard, it will be hard to watch.

And if Brennan thinks he's out of hot water, oh man, the hot water just got turned on. He'll be boiled alive like a Lobster in that Testifying Chair.

And Rogers over there at NSA and Sally Yates. Oh man, what they've done when it all comes out ... a nice six letter word called: infamy.

Russia didn't interfere in our election. Our "intel" community, Justice Department and Obama White House tried to interfere in our election, otherwise Donald Trump would have won all 50 states like he thought he would win and should have won.

The story of 2016 and 2017 isn't about the Russians as hard as the DNC and the CORRUPT MEDIA are trying to depict it that way, the story of 2016 is about NSA, CIA and FBI spying on Americans and our political campaigns for political purposes to defeat Donald Trump. The story of 2017 is about NSA, CIA and FBI spying on Americans and our new administration to try to overturn the election Hillary Clinton lost.

The Russians didn't spy on Americans.
The Russians didn't spy on our political campaigns.
The Russians didn't release classified information to the press.
The Russians didn't plant fake news polls that Hillary was winning by 10 points.
The Russians didn't start 5 investigations to take down an American President.

The Russian Ambassador made contact with the Trump transition team in public at Trump Tower with the Fox News live camera running 24/7 on the elevator lobby to establish contact and discuss new diplomatic relations. Nothing could be more normal or appropriate. A banker for VEB made contact with Kushner in a marketing effort probably in hopes that sanctions would be lifted at some point. He may not have been clear on whether Kushner was going to Washington at that point or returning to his Kushner Companies. I don't think on December 1-2, that decision had even been made yet. Nothing wrong with that.

Most everyone who voted for Trump knew that he wants a new improved relationship with Russia. He ran on this. He said he didn't know if one could be had but he wants to try to be friends with Russia and have a better relationship. He wants their help with Syria, Iran, North Korea and Afghanistan. He wants our countries to do more with trade that benefits both countries. He wants this fake cold war with Russia to be over. That doesn't mean you can trust them, it doesn't mean they'll always play ball the way we want it played, but there are more common elements to this relationship than there are differences, and he wants to denuclearize.

What is going on by our "intel" community and "leakers" is subversion. They are trying to overturn a Presidency to overturn the policies this President was elected to pursue and that means they are subverting and usurping the will of the people of the United States.

And the only "collusion" going on is the planned and coordinated subversion between the "intel" community, the "leakers" and the CORRUPT MEDIA.

Next week, Trump needs to take this on full speed. He needs to order the CIA to bring home all assets involved in every "intel" report they've leaked, pull them out, bring them home, and then declassify every byte and every word of every element, report, sources, methods, etc. that produced the "intel" that was leaked to the press. Every single iota of it. They can come up with new legal sources and methods.

NSA needs to be shut down.
CIA needs a total revamp, all leakers and their associates fired, and their role must be confined to operations overseas.
FBI needs a total revamp, all leakers and their associates fired, and their role must be confined to domestic operations.

We need an adjustment to FBI funding bill that excludes and prohibits any investigation of any public official, candidate for public office, political campaign or member of Congress by the FBI and we need an adjustment to the Department of Justice that excludes and prohibits any such investigations or prosecutions of any public official or candidate for office by the US Department of Justice.

Our elected federal representatives all have immunity under the US Constitution for a reason, and oh my goodness, does this election and new administration not serve as the CASE STUDY of why that is the case due to our wise Founding Fathers who for some reason had the amazing insight and foresight to see how fragile the will of the people can be unless protected by the same document that enables it.

The Hill has turned itself into an anti Trump liberal rag with an agenda. IMO