- a-mok (adverb) – to behave uncontrollable and disruptively. Synonym: go berserk
In the midst of debate over whether President Donald Trump’s pick to replace Dan Coats as the next Director of National Intelligence is qualified for the job, the President made comments on Tuesday that may explain his thinking.
Talking to a group of reporters, the President said that he had chosen U.S. Congressman from Texas John Ratcliffe to fill the job because “I think we need somebody like that in there. We need somebody strong that can rein it in. Because, as I think you’ve all learned, the intelligence agencies have run amok. They have run amok.”
It’s not the first time that the President has expressed his displeasure with the Intelligence Community. He said publicly that his intel chiefs should ‘go back to school’ in January after their intelligence assessment didn’t measure up to his own opinions on threats posed by Iran. Now, the comments come as the President nominates someone who is more aligned with the President’s own view on the Russia threats, to lead the organization that oversees the entire intelligence community.
The Cipher Brief spoke with former Acting CIA Director and Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin about the President’s comments and whether they mean much anymore.
The Cipher Brief: President Trump has accused the Intelligence Community of “running amok”. What’s your reaction?
McLaughlin: That is a startling, really jarring, statement coming from the president. Perhaps the most uncomprehending and misguided thing I’ve ever heard a president say about intelligence, showing little grasp of where the community fits in the foreign policy process – and how essential it is. These agencies don’t “run amok”; they are highly disciplined and put their total energy toward supporting a president with objective, fact-based information. “Running amok” is something they do only in fantasy movies.
The Cipher Brief: You’ve served as Acting Director of the CIA as well as Deputy Director of the CIA. If you were in either of those roles today, what would your message be to the workforce?
McLaughlin: The message would be very simple: keep your eye on the ball, don’t be distracted by comments like this. Our job is to stay focused, detect dangers to the United States, report them as objectively as humanly possible and help our foreign policy decision makers have a clear-eyed view of the world. “Keeping your eye on the ball” means recalling constantly that we are the nation’s first line of defense. We don’t do politics.
The Cipher Brief: What would U.S. Intelligence Officials tell us today about how headlines like this are playing back in Moscow?
McLaughlin: Putin is loving this. It plays right into his game plan for weakening the national security institutions of the United States and sowing division in our politics.
The Cipher Brief: How might the Russian President, who is already laying plans to interfere in the next U.S. election according to President Trump’s current Administration, be taking full advantage of what appears to be a rift between the President and the IC?
McLaughlin: I actually don’t think there is much scope for Putin to take advantage of this. I’m not even sure I would call this a “rift with the intelligence community.” It’s only a rift if both sides are playing. This is all one-way. The president says so many extreme things that I’m guessing people in the intelligence profession by now are accustomed to just moving forward with their jobs and looking straight-ahead. So, they will be on guard against election interference and will report what they detect. One can only hope that those receiving the reporting will take action to protect our elections and that the Congress soon finds consensus to harden our election systems against vulnerabilities.
The Cipher Brief: Comments like this from the President about the IC are nothing new. Why do people take them seriously?
McLaughlin: No one should take them seriously. People in the intelligence profession are so mission-driven that they just get up every morning and go do their jobs. I’m confident they will not be intimidated by this kind of talk. There is a strong commitment to stating the truth as best they can determine it. Day in and day out, that commitment is the most effective shield against political intimidation.
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