Dan Coats, the chief of intelligence, finds his voice. Will it make you angry?



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During Mr. Coats' second tour of the Senate from 2011 to 2017, Mr. Hingson said he was much more focused on national security, sitting on the Senate Intelligence Committee. Deeply critical of Putin's government, Coats was banned from Russia in 2014 for criticizing his incursions into Ukraine.

"You can talk about the Cold War if you want, but he sees Russia as an adversary," Mr. Hingson said.

At the beginning of Trump's administration, Mr. Coats was largely eclipsed by the first CIA of Trump's director, Mike Pompeo, a former congressman who enjoyed public and private attention. is ideologically close to Mr. Trump.

While the director of national intelligence is supposed to be placed at the top of the intelligence hierarchy, the effect of appearing apart from Mr. Coats. The promotion of Mr. Pompeo to the position of Secretary of State and the elevation of Gina Haspel, shadow career intelligence officer, at the head of the CIA, opened a door to M Coats.

Russia's persistent attacks on the United States, a few hours after the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence agents in the election interference and a few days before the Trump-Putin summit, indicated a more important role.

The emergence of Mr. Coats former CIA official, should be a signal for Mr. Trump of what should be the position of the administration on Russian interference. Yet, said the official, the new outspoken Mr. Coats could draw the unwanted attention of the president, who has complained of other cabinet members who displease or publicly challenge him.

Jim Mattis, the Secretary of Defense, played a role he avoids directly contradicting the president, but sticks to the views of foreign policy of the establishment, such as support for European allies and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which are in contradiction with the instinctive positions of Mr. Trump

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