Trump's remarks accentuate mistrust of the intelligence community

President TrumpThe Donald TrumpDC Board of Directors Rejects the Trump Hotel's Complaint Against the Complaint Regarding the Withdrawal of the Liquor License on the "Character" of the Trump Board of Directors The Board of Trump DC administration rejects the complaint for the rejection of the complaint about the withdrawal of the alcohol permit because of the "character" of Trump. pressure on migrants MOREThe statement that he would like to dirty his 2020 opponents from foreign governments threatens his already tense relations with the intelligence and law enforcement communities.

Former law enforcement and intelligence officials said the president's remarks may hinder efforts to fight foreign interference in next year's elections and dampen morale.

"Intelligence will be increasingly concerned that the US President does not fulfill the constitutional role of Commander-in-Chief and Chief Executive Officer," said Steven Cash. former CIA officer and former senior councilor of Sen. Dianne FeinsteinThe US women's football team Dianne Emiel Feinstein recalls the pressure for equal pay The US women's football team is reviving the pressure for equal pay The bipartisan senators are pushing a new bill to improve the disclosure of information on foreign lobbying MORE (D-Calif.)

The remarks come at a precarious moment for an intelligence community already subject to an investigation launched by Trump on the origins of the investigation into Russia.

Trump has authorized the Justice Department to interrogate CIA officers as part of the investigation, a decision that would have seemed to bother career intelligence officials. And he granted the Attorney General William BarrWilliam Pelham BarrTrump convinces Democrats to vote for contempt: "Republicans will remember" Trump: Democrats vote for scorn: "Republicans will remember" The Hill's Morning Report – Trump Democrats and of House take over the battle MORE the power to declassify information relating to the investigation.

The investigation is part of a long process in which Trump asked if the intelligence community could be trusted. He has repeatedly accused her of spying during the 2016 campaign.

Trump's suspicions about the intelligence community also seem well founded. This week, he pledged not to use CIA informants against the North Korean leader Kim Jong UnKim Jong UnTrump Seems to Disavow Promise Not to Use CIA Informants Against Kim Jong Un Trump Seems to Disavow Promise Not to Use CIA Informants Against Kim Jong Un Why United States Must Conclude Real Treaty With Kim North Korea PLUS, note that he came back later.

Trump's allies said his attitude to foreign interference was based on a deep sensitivity to the notion that he had won in 2016 because of Russian interference and that his victory was not therefore legitimate.

"That's what motivates him," said a source close to the White House, who requested anonymity to discuss Trump's thinking. "This echoes this misconception that he hates that he was elected because of it. It seems that's what drives him to be on the defensive against Russia. "

Trump also does not like to admit his fault, and claiming that he would call the FBI if adverse information about a rival was presented to him, this would represent a tacit concession that his campaign should have made when he received dirt deals Hillary ClintonHillary Diane Rodham ClintonThe founder of Young Turks says that Democrats should avoid repeating the year 2016 and choose a progressive founder of Young Turks. According to the Democrat, they should avoid repeating the year 2016 and choose a progressive Trump highlights polls that Clinton beat him at double digits MORE according to figures related to the Russian government in 2016.

"That's what you get when you have a president who is not screened and who gives you what he really thinks," said the source close to the White House.

In a bombing interview given to ABC News, the president unleashed a firestorm stating that accepting research from the opposition of a foreign government was "not an interference And that "I think I would take it".

Trump refused to pledge to contact the FBI to report a foreign actor seeking information, and said FBI director Christopher Wray was "wrong" to say in a Senate testimony that campaigns should contact the office if a foreign government made an offer "to influence or interfere in our election."

The FBI declined to comment on Trump's remarks to Stephanopoulos.

Democrats and Republicans have criticized Trump's remarks. The President of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) has even issued a rare statement that it is "unlawful for any person to solicit, accept or receive anything of value from a foreign national in the setting of an American election ".

"This is not an innovative concept," said ECF President Ellen Weintraub.

In an interview on Friday, Trump sought to limit the damage by telling Fox and his friends that he would "of course" go to the FBI or the Attorney General if a foreign government was offering dirt to a political rival but that was not going to be a problem. he should examine it. first to know if it's bad.

While White House officials defended Trump by insisting that his initial remarks were more nuanced, intelligence officials argued that it was important to be unequivocal because foreign opponents could understand Trump's rhetoric.

Special advocate Robert MuellerRobert (Bob) Swan Mueller Kamala Harris states that his Justice Department would have "no other choice" but to prosecute Trump for obstruction. Kamala Harris claims that her Justice Department would have "no choice" but to prosecute Trump for obstruction. Demobilization committees gain new powers to investigate Trump PLUSThe report notes that WikiLeaks began broadcasting e-mails from the Democratic National Committee under Russian GRU hackers in July 2016, about the same time Trump had said at a press conference: "Russia , if you listen, hope you can find it. The 30 000 missing e-mails. The report also notes that the Trump campaign "welcomed" the potential damage to the Clinton campaign by WikiLeaks releases.

In his report, Mueller said that he was considering indicting campaign funding violations of Donald Trump, Jr. and other participants at the June 2016 meeting of Trump Tower, but ultimately decided not to do so because of the heavy burden of proving that the participants had the intention to break the law. .

Mueller also found no evidence enough to accuse members of the campaign of conspiring with Russia to interfere in the election – a result that Trump has hailed as the advocacy for "collusion" allegations.

National security experts nonetheless found that the findings troubled Trump's attitude towards foreign participation in the elections.

"The Mueller report showed quite clearly that he readily accepted the help of illegal and inappropriate locations," said John Sipher, a retired member of the CIA's underground service. "At the end of the day, it's pretty sad to see his political opponents not as Americans on the same team, but as enemies that should be destroyed at any cost. At best, it is unpatriotic and provides foreign players who do not care about our interests a great lever. "

In the aftermath of the 2016 elections, the FBI has made the fight against foreign interference a top priority. The bureau even created a new task force in 2017 to "identify and counter malicious foreign influence operations targeting the United States."

This episode is the latest in a long history of conflict between the country 's intelligence and law enforcement agencies since the 2016 campaign.

Trump has repeatedly questioned the intelligence community's assessment of Russia's meddling, perhaps rallying memorablely to Russian President Putin to representatives of intelligence at a summit in Helsinki last July. Trump later returned in his remarks.

Trump has also been engaged in sustained attacks against FBI and justice officials, past and present, throughout the investigation, claiming that his campaign had been badly "spied on" in 2016.

These tensions have fueled policy debates. He called his intelligence chiefs "passive and naïve" in January, after contradicting them with his assessment of Iran's nuclear developments.

"Maybe the intelligence should go back to school!", He writes on Twitter.