National Security Council Quotes
the new CIA in 1947 He turned out to be right. The CIA has been a control problem ever since.
On May 11, 1998, India exploded a nuclear bomb. The CIA and the NSA were caught flatfooted. They had no inkling of such an event, and found out about it when the Indian Government announced it. The entire world balance of power had shifted and the United States had no warning despite the fact that the Indian Prime Minister and other Officials had publicly stated that they were working on a nuclear bomb. The American Warning System had failed totally. That is what prompted McCarthy’s statement. However, many key people at the CIA were angry at their old colleague for so dramatically drawing attention to what they regarded as a slip up. Later, when she returned to the CIA, there was much contention and she was fired by Republican Director Porter Goss, but the details of the circumstances have never been made public.
With Tehran in the throes of revolution, Under Secretary of State David D. Newsom called from the White House Situation Room with a question for Sullivan: "The National Security Advisor has asked for your view of the possibility of a coup d'état by the Iranian military to take over from the Bakhtiar government, which is clearly faltering."Tell Brzezinski to fuck off.Tell Brzezinski to fuck off.Tell Brzezinski to fuck off. Zbigniew Brzezinski was the President's National Security Advisor whom Sullivan did not like. This quotation is famous, not only because it shows have unhelpful and disrespectful a public official could be in the midst of a national crisis, but it supports the view of some critics of President Jimmy Carter who was not strong enough or respected enough for is various appointed to refrain from this kind of response. Zbigniew Brzezinski had concluded that since the radical, exiled, Islamic fundamentalist, the Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Tehran, the prospect of having a moderate government was nil and wanted to explore the possibility of supporting the Iranian Military in taking over the country. Sullivan, who had little experience with that part of the world and Islamic fundamentalism, wanted to try and negotiate with the revolutionary government and persuade them to adopt a moderate new regime. See Quote 583670.
The “Principals Committee” is the senior interagency forum for consideration of policy issues affecting national security. It includes the National Security Director (Chair), the CIA Director, the Secretary of Defense and his Deputy, the Secretary of State and his Deputy, the Chairman of the Jount Chief’s of Staff, The Special Representative to the United Nations and other staff as invited. Clarke was almost always invited to these meeting when terrorism was discussed but he did not have a vote. This is a very important quotation for several reasons. First, it shows the influence that the Defense Department and CIA leaders had with President Bush before the 9-11 attack. It also illustrates dramatically how reluctant our military and CIA were to use drones. It was President Obama who overruled them and changed America policy to use Drones to protect American interests. It also indicates how there was a split regarding the perception of the danger of Al Qaeda and bin Laden with Clark and some of the other Principals placing more value on a military strike than the military and covert action leaders. This is not uncommon despite the fact that public perception is that it is always the military leaders who are the hawks. Also, it illustrates the problem of allowing the military point of view to always prevail in national policy making involving use of force. See {639322}.
