8chan/8kun QResearch Posts (1)
#5627957 at 2019-03-11 21:28:05 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #7197: Once liar, always a liar. The End of the Mainstream Media Edition
Should CIA Director John Brennan Resign?
A new report says, yes, the CIA did spy on the Senate Intelligence Committee.
By Rachel Brody, Associate Editor for Opinion?July 31, 2014, at 5:40 p.m.
https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/07/31/should-cia-director-john-brennan-resign-after-the-senate-spying-scandal
Despite CIA Director John Brennan's repeated denials of wrongdoing, an internal report released Thursday confirmed the agency had hacked Senate Intelligence Committee computers used to produce a reportedly damning review of the CIA's former detention and interrogation program.
Brennan apologized in person to committee Chairwoman Diane Feinstein, D-Calif, and Vice Chairman Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., and said he plans to submit the review to an accountability board for advice on how best to proceed. "This board will review the OIG report, conduct interviews as needed, and provide the director with recommendations that, depending on its findings, could include potential disciplinary measures and/or steps to address systemic issues," CIA spokesman Dean Boyd told McClatchy.
For some, that doesn't cut it. After a briefing on the CIA's report, Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., says he has "no choice" but to call for Brennan's resignation. "The CIA unconstitutionally spied on Congress by hacking into Senate Intelligence Committee computers," said Udall. "This grave misconduct not only is illegal, but it violates the U.S. Constitution's requirement of separation of powers." Udall said the offenses by Brennan and others at the CIA amounted to "a tremendous failure of leadership" that merits "consequences."
Committee member Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., stopped short of calling for Brennan's resignation, but demanded further action, including "a full accounting of how this occurred and a commitment there will be no further attempts to undermine Congressional oversight of CIA activities."
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Feinstein, who brought the allegations against the CIA, seemed somewhat satisfied with Brennan's apology and his decision to submit the report for further inspection, calling them "positive first steps." But in a statement, the senator said the investigation confirmed her statements in March, and she believes the CIA's actions are "in violation of the constitutional separation of powers."
The American Civil Liberties Union is asking the Justice Department to open a full criminal investigation into the matter. "An apology is not enough," said ACLU senior legislative counsel Christopher Anders. "It is hard to imagine a greater threat to the Constitution's system of checks and balances than having the CIA spy on the computers used by the very Senate staff carrying out the Senate's constitutional duty of oversight over the executive branch."
The Justice Department was already asked to review whether the CIA or Senate had engaged in criminal activity but declined to do so three weeks ago. "The department carefully reviewed the matters referred to us and did not find sufficient evidence to warrant a criminal investigation," said spokesman Peter Carr.
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The White House has stood behind Brennan throughout the dispute and said today that they have "great confidence" in the CIA director. Press secretary Josh Earnest added that Brennan had "been candid about the inconsistencies the [inspector general's] report found," indicating the Obama administration's support isn't waning anytime soon.
So far, the Senate panel hasn't broached the topic of resignation. But when asked in March whether he'd consider resigning over the spying allegations, Brennan responded, "If I did something wrong, I will go to the president, and I will explain to him exactly what I did, and what the findings were. And he is the one who can ask me to stay or to go."